05-26-05 Regular Meeting and Public Hearing of the La Porte Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes

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Zoning Board of Adjustment July 28, 2005 #Y05-003 Page 2 of3 .:. That the granting of the variance will not be contrary to the best public interest. .:. That literal enforcement of the chapter 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 .:. That by granting the variance, the spirit of the chapter will be observed. In determining if granting the applicant's request would be contrary to the public interest, Staff recognizes that the development of the property with high fence location in particular may not create a problem with adjoining properties. Safety is cited as a primary issue since the adjacent street conveys heavy vehicular traffic. A survey of surrounding properties shows that this non-compliance with the ordinance is common to some other residences in the vicinity. The ordinance states that fences erected along property line in common with residential properties shall be subject to the provisions described in residential district fences requirement. In viewing the specific grounds for granting a variance, Staff noted that the reason, as for security and safety, is legitimate. Because of the nature and location of the property, we do not find, however, " . . . unnecessary hardships due to an exceptional narrowness, shallowness, shape topography, or other extraordinary or exceptional physical situation unique to the property in question." The applicant believes that a relief on the fence height will improve the image of an area and will match with an existing fence on the property. In addition, it will not have an adverse impact on the adjacent properties. In fact, the City's Little Cedar Bayou Park will be benefited as far as security is concerned. A memo from the City's Parks and Recreation Department is attached in this regard. The applicant requests that the Board recognize this as a positive step. The ZBOA's final consideration is whether granting of this request, observes the spirit of the ordinance. Conclusion: Variance Request #V05-003, which seeks a variance for allowing 8' high wood fence around an entire property, is contrary to Section 106-791 thru 106-793 of the City of La Porte's Code of Ordinances. In addition to the overall impact of a fence along Old Highway 146 (South Broadway), the parameters for the requested variance, however, in staff s opinion, appear to meet the provisions established by Section 106-192 Variances.