11-30-1989 Public Hearing and Regular Meeting

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~:..J ® VARIANCE REQUEST V89-001 PAGE -2- • ' n ur t the Board is empowered to grant a variance only when it finds all of the following conditions to be met. 1. That the granting of the variance will not be contrary to the public interest. 2. That literal enforcement of the Ordinance will result in unnecessary hardship because of exceptional narrowness, shallowness, shape, topography or other extraordinary or exceptional physical situation unique to the - specific piece of property in question. "Unnecessary hardship" shall mean physical hardship relating to the property itself as distinguished from a hardship relating to convenience, financial considerations or caprice, and the- hardship must not result ' from the applicant or property owner's own actions; and • 3. That by granting the variance, the spirit of the Ordinance will be observed. ANALYSIS: Exhibit C is a master plan of the I.W. II, Inc. and Hickham Industries complexes. Their master plan which was prepared in February of 1989, indicates the location of both existing and proposed .structures. Structures highlighted with crosshatching have been completed since the original plan was drafted. At the time this plan was prepared, La Porte's zoning requirements were regulated by Zoning Ordinance 780. This plan complies with all zoning requirements which were in effect during 1984. Dt~e to the shallow (for industrial applications) depth of the east end of the I:W. II tract, the original buildings were located fairly close to the rear property line. This placement, which complied witi~ ~t}~e requirements of Zoning Grdinance 730, allows for adequate off-street maneuvering and parking at the front of the buildings: T}~e ado~~i~ion of Ordinance ].501, with its more stringent rear setback requirements,.)•ias rendered t:wo of the I.W. II buildings, including the one proposed for e::pansion, nonconforming. The applicant contends that, for the following reasons, literal enf_orcemer~t of the rear setback requirements of Ordinance 1501 would cause an "unnecessary hardship".