HomeMy WebLinkAboutZ-9540 BOA Staff ReportOCTOBER 15, 2020
ITEM NO. 6 Z-9540
1
File No.: Z-9540
Owner: JC Tread Not, LLC
Applicant: Common Ground Development Co.
Address: 406 East 17th Street
Description: East 45 feet of Lot 6, Block 52, Original City of Little Rock,
Pulaski County, Arkansas.
Zoned: R-4
Variance Requested: A variance is requested from the Area provisions of Section
36-256 to allow reduced front and rear yard setbacks in an
R-4 district, and from the Design Regulations of Section 36-
370 to allow parking in the required front yard in the Central
City Design Overlay District.
Justification: The applicant’s justification is presented in an attached letter.
Present Use: Vacant/undeveloped
Proposed Use: Single-Family Residential
STAFF REPORT
A. Planning and Development Civil Engineering:
No Comments.
B. Staff Analysis:
This R-4 zoned property is a 45’ wide by 50’ deep “lot of record,” reflected in a
warranty deed recorded in 1935, and the 406 E. 17th Street address of record is
evidenced in the 1939 Sanborn Fire Insurance maps of Little Rock. All adjacent
properties and much of the surrounding area is zoned R-4 (two-family.) The subject
site lies within the Central City Overlay District. The property is undeveloped, except
for an existing small storage shed intended for removal, an existing curb cut to be
demolished and relocated, and existing fencing to be removed and replaced.
The applicant proposes to construct a one- two-story 748 s.f. 1,496 g.s.f. single-
family home with an attached one-car carport, and requests variances to reduce the
required 25’ front and 25’ rear yards to 10’ front and 6’ rear yards, respectively. The
applicant also requests permission to park in the proposed front yard driveway,
otherwise prohibited within the Central City Overlay District.
OCTOBER 15, 2020
ITEM NO. 6 (CON’T.) Z-9540
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Section 36-256(d)(1) states, “There shall be a front yard having a depth of not less
than twenty-five (25) feet.” Section 36-256(d)(3) states, “There shall be a rear yard
having a depth of not less than twenty-five (25) feet.” Section 36-155 states [in order
to be granted a variance,] “The property owner must show to the Board of
Adjustment the subject property is so restricted that the buildable area is not
sufficient for reasonable construction.”
Section 36-370(5) states, “Parking shall be prohibited in the front yard setback”
[within the Central City Overlay District.]
This application proposes to add affordable housing stock and utilize existing infra-
structure to increase residential density and home occupancy in an area often
characterized by vacant and/or marginally maintained properties. The proposed 10’
setback will be compatible with the adjacent side yard setback of newly renovated
1623 Rock Street, adjacent to the west. Strict application of the standard front and
rear setback requirement will render the 50-foot-deep lot undevelopable as a
residential site, and staff views the setback reduction request as reasonable and
appropriate.
The existing curb cut would be replaced with an appropriately located driveway
serving the proposed home and carport. The proposed carport location will facilitate
a second car parked in the driveway, in front of the carport, yet clear of the 17th
Street sidewalk. The proposed home and driveway will face south, directly across
17th Street from the Scholastic Academy parking lot, and staff believes the allowance
to park in the driveway is appropriate.
C. Staff Recommendation:
In view of the above analysis, staff recommends approval of the requested
variances, in accordance with the attached site sketch and with the following
conditions:
1. The proposed carport may be no closer than 15’ to the front (south) property
line;
2. The existing curb cut shall be removed, curb and gutter repaired or replaced as
necessary, and the new driveway apron and driveway constructed no closer than
5’ to the adjacent (west) property line (extended;)
3. Compliance with all other requirements of the Central City Design Overlay
District.