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West Seneca Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting Minutes 09/24/2008
The regular meeting of the Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of West Seneca was called to order by Chairman William H. Bond on September 24, 2008 at 7:00 PM, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. ROLL CALL: Present -
Penny K. Price Sandra Giese Rosenswie Michael Hughes Michael Harmon Paul Notaro, Deputy Town Attorney William Czuprynski, Code Enforcement Officer Excused - None OPENING OF PUBLIC HEARING Motion by Mrs. Price, seconded by Mr. Harmon, to open the Public Hearing.
APPROVAL OF PROOFS OF PUBLICATION Motion by Mr. Hughes, seconded by Mr. Harmon, to approve the proofs of publication and posting of legal notice.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion by Mr. Harmon, seconded by Mrs. Price, to approve Minutes #2008-08, August 27, 2008.
TABLED ITEMS: 2008-035 Mr. Bond noted the applicant has not appeared yet. This request will be heard at the conclusion of the other items on the agenda in order to allow him sufficient time to appear.
NEW BUSINESS: 2008-061 Secretary DePasquale informed the Board that she had been contacted by the applicant who is requesting this item be tabled until next month. Motion by Mr. Hughes, seconded by Mrs. Rosenswie, to table this item until the October meeting.
2008-067 Joseph Kloc, 1245 Seneca Creek Road, stated the property is zoned residential. His parents started the business in 1955 and have been operating it as a business ever since. They would like to make renovations to accommodate a bride’s vehicle in the circle. They will also be adding some trees and gardens and a larger foyer for use in case of rain. Mr. Bond asked the Code Enforcement Officer to confirm that it a non-conforming use, requiring a variance. Mr. Czuprynski stated that was correct. Mr. Bond asked if this property has ever been expanded since the original building was erected. Mr. Kloc responded that it had been expanded many times over the past 53 years. Mr. Bond asked if those expansions required a variance. Mr. Czuprynski stated he was unaware of any being issued. Mr. Bond asked if the applicant would be able to meet the required setback requirements. Mr. Kloc stated he would.
Mr. Hughes asked if the neighbors had been notified. Mr. Kloc submitted letters of no objection from residents at 1255 Seneca Creek Road and 1225 Seneca Creek Road. He noted that he had spoken with Mr. Harmon, one of the Zoning Board members, who lives nearby, and Mrs. Price resides behind the facility. Mr. Bond noted that both Mr. Harmon and Mrs. Price would most likely be abstaining from the vote due to their close proximity to the property. He asked if either one had an objection to the project. Mr. Harmon stated he reviewed the plan and had no objection to the proposed renovations and in fact they would only add to the attractiveness of the current facility. No comments were received from the public. Motion by Mr. Hughes, seconded by Mrs. Rosenswie, to close the public hearing and grant a variance for property located at 1245 Seneca Creek Road to renovate building as required to enhance accessibility, update interiors and landscaping.
2008-068 Dean & Denise Sorrentino appeared on the request. Mr. Sorrentino stated they would like to build a house and the adjacent 400 precludes them from locating the driveway on the right side. Having the driveway on the left would make it too close to the adjoining property according to the town code. Mr. Bond clarified that the reason applicants are requesting a variance is because the proposed building on the right hand side is too close to the property line. The applicants’ situation is unique because the property has 20 feet of green area which is owned by the State for a turnaround, which makes the applicants technically fronting on that turnaround. The normal setback instead of being 6 ft would be 30 ft. Corner lots have two fronts; one on each street and the setback is 30 ft. Applicants’ situation is unique because this is a dead end street which is just a turnaround.
2008-068 (Continued) Mrs. Price asked if this was a two-family home. Mrs. Sorrentino stated it was not a two-family home, but her parents would be residing with them. She reviewed the exact location of the proposed driveway with Zoning Board members. The current house will be demolished. Mr. Bond also noted that the house could not be moved back farther because of an existing swale and therefore the applicants are unable to comply with the ordinance. No comments were received from the public. Motion by Mr. Bond, seconded by Mrs. Rosenswie, to close the public hearing and grant a variance for property located at 344 Bullis Road to erect house 6 ft from exterior side yard.
2008-069 John Mowers, 164 Tim Tam Terrace, stated he is erecting a 6 ft high fence in the back yard and would like to erect a 6 ft high solid fence coming down the side of the property. That is the windy side of the house and snow gets blown from the neighbor’s side and that is also the windy side of the house. Blowing snow has covered up the intake from the furnace on several occasions. The primary reason is for security as that side of the house is where all the utilities are located. A 4 ft high fence could allow someone to climb over the fence and land on the air conditioning unit. Mr. Bond noted that other residents in town have the same problem and failed to see the uniqueness of the applicant’s situation. Mr. Mowers noted his hardship is based on the close proximity of where the utilities are located and the inability of a 4 ft fence to resolve the problem. Mr. Hughes stated a variance is given where a hardship exists, but a hardship was questionable in this case.
2008-069 (Continued) Mr. Mowers stated his hardship is based on the way the properties were designed; that is the only side of the house where the utilities can go. Mr. Bond doubted that a 6 ft fence would allow any more security for the utilities than a 4 ft fence would. Mr. Hughes asked the applicant if he had letters of no objection from the neighbors. Mr. Mowers stated his situation is tenuous with the neighbor. They have lived in the house for four years and it was their understanding that any kind of conflict with that particular neighbor would only cause more problems. Mr. Bond noted the applicant called him and explained the problem with the neighbor and the inability to obtain a letter from him. No comments were heard from the public. Motion by Mr. Harmon, seconded by Mr. Hughes, to close the public hearing and deny the request for a variance for property located at 164 Tim Tam Terrace to erect 6 ft high fence in side yard set back. On the question, Mr. Harmon stated he failed to see where the applicant had adequately shown a hardship. On the question, Mr. Bond agreed, that the applicant’s situation is not unique and failed to meet the legal standard of a hardship.
2008-035 Mr. Bond noted the time is 7:20 p.m. and the applicant has not appeared on this matter. Mr. Mager was present at the last meeting and aware this was tabled until tonight. Motion by Mr. Harmon, seconded by Mrs. Price, to remove this item from the table.
Mr. Bond further noted that the Code Enforcement Officer was to advise whether or not the parking was necessary. He has been informed that there is sufficient parking without the variance. Mr. Czuprynski stated that after receiving the plan from the applicant, and comparing it to what is on file in his office and the Fire Inspector’s layout, the building can accommodate 111 people inside and 35 people outside for a total of 146 people. The code allows 2 spaces for every 5 seats. He needs 58. From the parking plan provided by applicant which does allows for expansion, he needs 64 spaces. The applicant does not require any additional spaces. Mr. Bond noted this is a non-conforming use and the applicant has already expanded at least once. No comments were heard from the public. Paul Rudnicki, Esq., stated he would rely upon the decision of the Code Enforcement Officer and also noted that there is no expansion in a R-zoning, so it is their position it has reached the maximum no matter what. Motion by Mrs. Rosenswie, seconded by Mr. Harmon, to close the public hearing and deny the request for a variance for property located at 3369 Clinton Street/3373-3385 Clinton Street to allow additional parking on vacant lot. On the question, Mr. Bond stated there is nothing unique in the applicant’s situation, the applicant has already expanded twice, and no hardship has been demonstrated.
ADJOURNMENT: Motion by Mrs. Price, seconded by Mrs. Rosenswie, to adjourn.
Respectfully submitted, Patricia C. DePasquale, Secretary For additional information, suggestions, or problems, please contact our Webmaster.
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