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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZ-9697 - 1700 N Pierce - BOA Staff RptFile No.: Z-9697 Owners: Rebecca Sullivan / Sara Sullivan Mader Applicant: Rebecca and Charles Sullivan Address: 1700 N Pierce Legal Description: Lot 5, Block 23, Mountain Park Addition to the City of Little Rock, Pulaski County Arkansas Zoned: R-2 Present Use: Single-family Residence Proposed Use: Single-family Residence Variance(s) Requested: A variance is requested from the area provisions of Section 36-254 to allow a reduced front yard setback in the R-2 district. Justification: The applicant’s justification is presented as per the attached letter dated August 16, 2022. STAFF REPORT Planning and Development Civil Engineering Comments: No Comments. B. Buffering and Landscape Comments: In October 2020 the City adopted the “Heights Landscape Design Overlay District,” requiring installation of one tree per 40 linear feet of street frontage within the Heights District Boundary, applicable to [among other types] residential construction in excess of 600 square feet. C. Building Codes Comments: The required fire separation distance (building to property line) prescribed by the building code terminates at five (5) feet. Buildings are allowed to be closer than five (5) feet if they have properly constructed fire walls which provide the requisite one (1) hour fire resistance rating. When buildings are five (5) feet or more from the property line, the requirement no longer applies to the wall itself, only the projections such as eaves or overhangs. Openings such as doors and windows are limited when the exterior wall is three (3) feet from the property line and are prohibited when the exterior wall is less than three (3) feet from the line. There is no restriction on openings when the exterior wall is more than three (3) feet from the property line. Contact the City of Little Rock Building Codes at (501)371-4832 for additional details. D. Staff Analysis: The property at 1700 N Pierce St is in a predominantly R-2 zoned neighborhood, within the Heights Landscape Design Overlay District. This overlay district generally has no bearing on the subject variance requests. The subject property is located on the northwest corner of N Pierce and P Streets, one block south of Cantrell Avenue. The property was originally developed as a small one-story frame single-family residence. The current owner is planning to raze the existing structure and build a new single-family residence. The survey indicates the lot to be 50-feet in width and 140-feet in length. The sketch provided by the applicant indicates that the new house will face east towards N Pierce St and a garage and off-street parking will be accessed from P Street at the back of the new home. The front wall of the new structure is shown to be located 19.4-feet back from the front (east) property line to maintain alignment with the existing homes on the west side of the street. This alignment will cause the house to encroach on the 25-foot front yard setback 5.6-feet. The side and rear yard setbacks are shown to be within the code requirements for this parcel. Section 36-254(d)(1) of the City's Zoning Ordinance requires a minimum 25-foot front building setback for R- 2 zoned lots. Therefore, the applicant is requesting a variance from this ordinance to construct a new home with a reduced front yard setback. Staff views the front yard setback variance of this new construction as minor compared with the buildable capacity available to the property owner. The new home will not be out of character with many other lots in this general area. There are numerous structures in this neighborhood which have reduced front yard setbacks. The proposed construction will have setbacks relatable to the other surrounding homes within proximity to the proposed construction and presents no foreseeable adverse impact on the adjacent properties or the general area. Based on the analysis above, staff believes the subject proposal is in keeping with the character and scale of the neighborhood and views the variance request as reasonable. E. Staff Recommendation: Staff recommends approval of the requested front yard setback reduction from 25-feet to a minimum of 19.4-feet as outlined in the staff analysis and indicated on the attached sketch, subject to the following conditions: 1. A building permit being obtained for all construction. 2. Install trees, if deemed applicable at the time of building permitting, in accordance with Heights Landscape Design Overlay District requirements.