Board grants Cox family variance to add porches to waterfront dwelling, cites permitting conditions

The Calvert County Board of Appeals voted unanimously on March 6 to grant a critical-area variance allowing Michael and Anna Cox to add approximately 500 square feet of wraparound porches to a dwelling at 5464 Sixes Road in Prince Frederick. The board’s decision followed testimony from the applicants and staff discussion about a late letter from the Critical Area Commission that staff accepted into the record.

Michael Cox, who testified he has been working on the permit for about a year, told the board the structure was intended as a single-family dwelling and “it has never been a pole barn.” He said porches were on earlier plans and are integral to the house’s design, providing structural support and shade for a home without central air. Planning staff and the county’s representatives explained that while the board’s formal review is limited to the porch additions, other permitting steps (septic, well, mitigation per COMAR) will be enforced through the county building-permit process.

In reading findings of fact, a board member concluded the variance would not injure the public interest, would be the minimum adjustment necessary and that literal enforcement of the local critical-area program would cause undue hardship. The motion to grant the variance included a condition that the Coxes comply with all county permitting and mitigation requirements; the board emphasized that mitigation and environmental-review steps remain part of the permitting process.

The board closed the record on the case after receiving evidence and correspondence, including 13 letters of support and a late submission from the Critical Area Commission; several members said the late timing reduced that letter’s weight but accepted it into the file. The order and written findings will follow within the board’s standard timeframe.