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April 9, 2019 Page 5 As with the discussion of the addition on the front, staff would agree that the living space addition is appropriate in this location. The addition maintains a 30 foot distance from Harding Street, and is supported by the same rationale for the encroachment toward 34th Avenue – reasonable use, neighborhood character, and practical difficulties. In this case, the corner lot setback requirements and the common setback conditions along 34th Avenue (particularly the north side of the street) support some level of encroachment. Staff is concerned, however, with the placement of the proposed garage. At 15.4 feet, a vehicle parked in the driveway would extend into the public right of way, a problematic condition during snow plowing operations. Moreover, the plan shows a proposed 12.9% grade for the new driveway. While the City does not establish a specific maximum grade for driveways, this slope is only marginally functional. Many communities limit driveway grades to 10% or even less. Moreover, parking and exiting a vehicle on a slope such as this can be difficult for some to negotiate. For the garage portion of the project, staff would recommend that any setback variance limit encroachment into the side yard to a point no less than 20 feet from the property line. This distance provides a sufficient parking stall depth without encroaching into the right of way. In this particular case, it would also have the benefit of reducing the driveway slope by extending the distance. The additional driveway length would reduce the slope to less than 10% or so, a safer and more manageable condition. While the existing detached garage is closer to the property line than the proposed attached garage, and this is not an uncommon condition along the street for such garages, staff supports the greater setback to facilitate public safety, as well as improved functionality on the property in question. As such, staff recommends approval of the variance for a side yard setback encroachment as shown on the proposed plans for the living space (to a distance of 23.4 feet from 34th Avenue), but recommends an amendment to the plan that moves the garage farther into the lot to a 20 foot setback – a ten foot variance from the 30 foot standard. The applicant should amend this aspect of the project on the proposed construction plans for the site. 2. Representative Codes Referenced. Title XV Land Usage, Chapter 152 Zoning Code, Section §152.039 (E) Front yard apply to this proposal. City Code Section 152.039 (E) states the front yard must have a depth equal to the greater of 30 feet or a distance equal to the average of the front yard depths of the two adjacent lots. Title XV Land Usage, Chapter 152 Zoning Code, Section §152.04 (F) Side yards. Each dwelling must have 2 side yards, each having a width of at least 5 feet and having a combined width of at least 15 feet. Any side yard adjacent to a street must be at least 30 feet in width 33