05-26-1994 Public Hearing and Regular Meeting ZBOA

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Page 2 of 6 Zoning Board of Adjustment Staff Report of 06/13/94 V94-007 The large setbacks are intended to insure adequate room for parking and for maneuvering heavy trucks. The property development controls (prohibitions against outside storage, lot coverage limits, landscaping, and screening) placed on B.I. zones are intended to maximize their ability to serve as buffers for thoroughfares and residential districts. Another Zoning Ordinance requirement that pertains to all industrial zones is driveway width. Due to the heavy truck traffic normally associated with industrial activities, driveways in all industrial zones are required to be at least 30 feet wide. The B.I. zone in which the applicant's property is located is somewhat a- typical. It is located in a high profile area and it does separate West Main Street from large Light Industrial tracts. However, rather than being comprised of acreage type parcels, the property within the zone is platted in typical Town of La Porte blocks. Individual lots are 25' x 125' and blocks are divided by 16 foot wide alleys. Further, many blocks, including the one containing the subject tract, have multiple owners. This can limit ability to "block up" property into larger parcels (see Exhibit C). It was recognized during the course of developing the City's Zoning Map that if B.I. zoning were assigned, lot size in this area would potentially cause setback problems for new development. It was felt, however, that it was important to buffer West Main Street from the L.I. zones located to the north and south. It was also recognized that if General Commercial zoning was assigned, the majority of existing businesses within the area would be rendered non- conforming. Additionally, the somewhat limited access that is available to this area would limit its viability as a retail district. For these reasons, Business Industrial zoning was assigned to this area. It was assigned with knowledge that variance relief from the Board of Adjustment might be necessary in order to develop within the area. Analysis: Zoning Ordinance Section 11-606 defines a variance as a "deviation from the literal provisions of the Zoning Ordinance which is granted by the Board when strict conformity ... would cause an unnecessary hardship because of the circumstances unique to the property on which the variance is granted."