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Item No: 5C Meeting Date: May 20, 2015 Type of Business: Planning Case City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Mounds View Planning Commission From: Heidi Heller, Planning Associate Item Title/Subject: Public Hearing - Consideration of a Variance for a Reduced Garage Setback at 8330 Groveland Road; Planning Case VR2015-004 Introduction: The applicants, Michael and Andrea Shoup, are requesting approval of a variance for a reduced garage setback on their property at 8330 Groveland Road. The applicant’s purchased this property in August 2014 and a month later the detached garage burned down. The applicants are in the process of building a new detached garage, and would like to rebuild the garage next to the house instead of in the backyard where it was. The proposed detached garage is 24’ x 24’ with a 5 foot walkway between the house and garage. This proposal would put the garage about 3 feet from the side property line. The Zoning Code requires a 5 foot side and rear setback for accessory buildings, so the applicants have requested a variance for a reduced garage setback. Discusssion: The previous detached garage was in the backyard and there is also an in-ground swimming pool behind the house, which left very little open grass area in the backyard. The applicants are building a new garage and would like to make the property more livable by placing the garage next to the house. This would give the family better access to the garage and open up half of the backyard for grassed play area. They would like to leave a 5 foot walkway between the house and garage so there is enough room to go between the front and back yards. The garage would then have a 3 foot setback from the south property line. The property that is directly adjacent to the new garage is a 1.55 acre City-owned parcel that is almost entirely wetland. The Zoning Code states that the Planning Commission may issue a variance to provide relief to the landowner in those cases where the Code imposes practical difficulties to the property owner in the use of the property owner’s land. This is true for all variance requests. State statutes require that the governing body review a set of specified criteria for each application and make its decision in accordance with these criteria. These criteria are set forth in Section 1125.02, Subdivision 2, of the City Code. A variance may be granted only in the event that all of the following circumstances exist: a. The variance is in harmony with the general purposes and intent of these regulations. The zoning code requires minimum building setbacks for aesthetics and to provide separation and some sense of privacy between neighbors. Years ago it was common to build a detached garage in the backyard after the home was built. Homes are now built with attached garages and open backyards are important spaces for families. The variance will allow the property to become more practical and livable for residents.