Neighbors object but commission approves variance allowing five addresses on shared private driveway

The Dawson County Planning Commission approved a variance to allow up to five addresses to be served by a single private driveway, clearing the way for applicant Ford Jordan to seek permits to build two residences on his 22-acre parcel.

Jordan said he and his family have been unable to obtain a building permit because county code requires private roads that provide access to more than two residences to be named and numbered. "We have been unable to obtain a building permit. Currently, there are five addresses on this existing private driveway easement," Jordan said, describing the easement as in place since about 1996 and saying the two new homes would be for himself and his daughter.

Neighbors who spoke in favor of granting the variance emphasized they like Jordan and did not want to block his ability to live on the property, but they objected to being required to change long-standing addresses. Terry Bradley said she and her husband had lived on the easement for decades and that their attorney told them they are "grandfathered" and would not need to change their address; she added that conservation-program restrictions may prevent an immediate land swap to create an alternate access. "It's not fair to make us change our address just so they can have a place to live," Bradley said.

A commissioner clarified that the planning commission has no authority over tax assessors and cannot compel neighbors to rename or renumber their addresses; the board nonetheless approved the variance after discussion, permitting Jordan to proceed with building plans subject to usual permitting requirements.