Commission recommends denial of variance for 18113 Bancroft Avenue addition

The commission voted to recommend that the City Council deny a variance application (No. 20253089) that would allow a reduced rear-yard setback for a proposed 225-square-foot addition at 18113 Bancroft Avenue. Staff told the commission that the house, built in the 1960s, has a legal nonconforming 25-foot rear-yard setback and that current zoning requires 30 feet; staff concluded the required findings for a variance could not be met and recommended denial.

Applicant Dan Caseta said the lot is long, narrow and sloped and that enclosing an existing covered patio under the current roofline is the only practical way to add interior space without a major roof modification. "So I do feel like we're being subjected to an unnecessary hardship here in limiting what we can do with this already enclosed with this already covered space," Caseta said, describing the requested 225-square-foot addition and arguing neighbors would not be impacted.

A neighbor, Bob Alapcivic, testified in support, saying the proposed change is visually compatible and that backyard neighbors ‘‘have no real grievance’’ with the plan. Commissioners pushed back that the record did not show the kind of unique lot constraint—such as a sewer easement or extreme slope—that has supported past variances and warned that granting relief without those findings could create a precedent. A motion to recommend denial was moved and seconded and passed on roll call vote; staff said the item is scheduled for City Council on Jan. 20 at 7:00 p.m.

The commission’s action is a recommendation to the City Council, which will make the final decision. The staff report noted that because the addition is under 750 square feet, no site development permit is required; other details in the record include the house’s construction era and the municipal-code provision that ordinarily prohibits enlarging legal nonconforming conditions.