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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1977_02_23 Zoning Board of Appeals Minutes MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING OF THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS OF THE TOWN OF MAMARONECK HELD FEBRUARY 23, 1977, IN THE COUNCIL ROOM OF THE WEAVER STREET FIREHOUSE, WEAVER STREET AND EDGEWOOD AVENUE, TOWN OF MAMARONECK, LARCHMONT, NEW YORK. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by the Chairman at 8:15 P.M. ROLL CALL Present: Mr. E. Robert Wassman, Chairman Mr. Andrew W. Boraczek Mr. Peter G. Moore Absent: Mr. Egbert R. Hardesty Mr. Lawrence G. Bodkin , Jr. Also present: Mr. William Paonessa, Building Inspector APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes of the meeting of December 1 , 1976 were pre- sented and on motion duly made and seconded, approved as submitted. PUBLIC HEARING The Chairman declared the hearing open and the Secretary presented for the record the affidavit of publication of the notice of hearing. Mr. Wassman explained to the applicants that because only three members were present their applications would have to be approved unanimously and they had the privilege of having their applications heard at another meeting without penalty. The Secretary was asked to read the first application. APPLICATION NO. 1 - CASE 452 Application of Mr. and Mrs. Nicola Arpaia for modifica- tion of Article VI Section 89-33 Subsection B (1 ) "Con- struction Requirements for a One Family Residence District R-10 of the Zoning Ordinance so as to allow the construc- tion of a roof over front entrance porch having a front setback of 26 ft. instead of the required minimum front setback of 30 ft. on the premises located at 434 Weaver Street and known on the Tax Assessment Map of the Town of Mamaroneck as Block 221 Parcel 167 on the grounds of practical difficulty and/or unnecessary hardship. Mr. Widulski represented Mr. Arpaia and said that he had prepared the plans for the applicant. Mr. 'Widulski said that the original house had been completely damaged by fire and had been built with a 20 ft. setback. He fur- ther said that the proposed house has a 30 ft. setback and is being constructed on the old foundation. Mr. Widulski , also, said that the original plan for the rebuilt house showed a porch at the front and after they started construction Mr. Arpaia decided he would like to have the porch covered with a balcony on the second floor. He, also, said that the applicant feels the balcony will form a protection from the elements on the front entrance reducing the hazards of the ice and snow. In conclusion, Mr. Widulski stated that the house could not be moved back any further because of the location of the existing gar- age. The Board asked Mr. Arpaia if he had been the owner of the house at the time of the fire and he said that he had purchased the property after the fire. After further discussion a vote was taken on the applica- tion and the result was as follows : Commissioner Wassman - Aye Commissioner Boraczek - Aye Commissioner Moore - Aye The application was therefore approved and the following Resolution duly adopted: WHEREAS, Mr. and Mrs. Nicola Arpaia have sub- mitted an application to the Building Inspec- tor to allow the construction of a roof over front entrance porch having a front setback of 26 ft. , together with plans ; and WHEREAS, the Building Inspector has refused to issue such permit on the grounds that the plans submitted failed to comply with the Zon- ing Ordinance of the Town of Mamaroneck with particular reference to Article VI Section 89-33 Subsection B (1 ) "Construction Requirements for a One Family Residence District R-10" which requires a front setback of 30 ft. on the premises located at 434 Weaver Street and known on the Tax Assessment Map of the Town of Mama- roneck as Block 221 Parcel 167; and • WHEREAS, Mr. and Mrs. Nicola Arpaia have sub- mitted an application to this Board for a vari- ance on the ground of practical difficulty and/or unnecessary hardship for the following reasons: 1 . The proposed roof over the front porch will provide protection from the elements and reduce the hazard from the ice and snow. 2. The original building had a front setback of 20 ft. from the property line and the new front setback is the required 30 ft. WHEREAS, this Board has examined the plans , reviewed the application and has heard all persons interested in this application after publication of a notice thereof, NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that this Board granted the appli- cation on the following grounds : (a) That there are special circum- stances and conditions applying to the land and/or building for which a variance is sought, which circum- stances and/or conditions have not resulted from any acts of the appli- cant subsequent to the date of the Zoning Regulations appealed from. (b) That the said circumstances and/ or conditions are as follows : 1 . The proposed roof will not encroach on the present front yard any further than the proposed porch. 2. The balcony over the porch will provide protec- tion from the elements and reduce the hazard from the ice and snow. (c) That the granting of this vari- iance will be in harmony with the general purposes and intent of this Ordinance and will not be injurious to the neighborhood or otherwise detri- mental to the public welfare; and it is FURTHER RESOLVED, that a variance is hereby granted to the applicant and that Article VI Section 89-33 Subsection B (1 ) "Construction Requirements for a One Family Residence District R-10" so as to allow the construction of a roof over the front entrance porch having a front setback of 26 ft. on the premises located at 434 Weaver Street and known on the Tax Assess- ment Map of the Town of Mamaroneck as Block 221 Parcel 167 in strict conformance with plans filed with the application provided that the applicant complies in all other respects with the Zoning Ordinance and Building Code of the Town of Mamaroneck; and he it FURTHER RESOLVED, that in accordance with the Rules and Regulations of the Zoning Ordi- nance where a variance is granted the applicant shall obtain a building permit within three months of the filing of this Resolution with the Town Clerk. The building permit shall be void if construction is not started within six months and completed within two years of the date of said permit. FURTHER RESOLVED, that this decision be filed with the Town Clerk as provided in Section 267 of the Town Law. The Chairman asked the Secretary to read the next appli- cation. APPLICATION NO. 2 - CASE 453 Application of Mrs. Frank LaMantia for modification of Article VII Section 89-41 Subsection A (3) "Construction Requirements for a "B" Business District" of the Zoning Ordinance so as to allow the construction of a one story addition at the rear of the existing building which will increase existing building coverage 7% to a total build- ing coverage of 42% instead of the maximum building cover- age of 25% on the premises located at 1395 Boston Post Road and known on the Tax Assessment Map of the Town of Mamaroneck as Block 411 Parcel 224 on the grounds of practical difficulty and/or unnecessary hardship. Mr. Widulski represented the applicant and said that Mr. LaMantia owned the property for over twenty years. He stated that the original building is presently non- conforming and that a variance had been granted before the present zoning law was passed in 1959 allowing the structure to extend beyond then then zoned Business Dis- trict. Mr. Widulski stated that the application was for two distinct reasons. The first reason was because of the nature of the business and the second to protect the premises and vehicles from theft and vandalism. He fur- ther said that the addition would provide for two indoor parking spaces and five outdoor spaces at the rear for the employees with customer parking at the front of the property. Mr. Widulski , also , said that the type of customers that the applicant has are in and out quick and because of the competition with service stations, etc. it is necessary for Mr. LaMantia to maintain a mas- sive inventory to supply customer' s demand; immediately. In conclusion Mr. Widulski pointed out that the second floor which had been occupied by a recreation establish- ment has been removed and is now used for parts storage and will reduce the need for the parking of the previous tenant' s customers. Mr. Paonessa explained to the Board members that the previous zoning for the property in question was 100 � �' 11 I ft. on the Boston Post Road and the rear of the property was zoned residential , therefore, it was necessary for a variance to be granted for the business to extend into the residential zone. It was pointed out that the five spaces provided at the front of the building is actually less than the required by the Code but could provide for six cars. If a fence and gate were installed at the driveway to the rear it would eliminate the extra parking spas'.e. Maintenance of the driveway was considered essential . Mr. LaMantia spoke and said that because of the foreign car market it is necessary to expand his parts inventory so as to compete with the other dealers. Mr. LaMantia said that on Monday night his trucks and property had been vandalized. Mr. Wassman said that he thought Mr. LaMantia's hardship was actually the need for protection from vandalism and Mr. Boraczek wondered if a fence wouldn' t solve the pro- blem. The Board questioned Mr. LaMantia about the growth of the business and asked if the addition would only solve his problem for a few years. The Board expressed concern about the fact that if Mr. LaMantia expanded what would happen when there was no more room at the present site. They did not want to think of a non-con- forming building being unusable due to limited area for parking. The applicant further said that his stock of replaceable parts are only kept on hand for a period of ten years and that his truck cannot be left out when they are loaded because of the vandalism. After a brief discussion a vote was taken on the appli- cation and the result was as follows : Commissioner Wassman - Nay Commissioner Boraczek - Nay Commissioner Moore - Nay The application was therefore denied and the following Resolution duly adopted: WHEREAS, Mrs. Frank LaMantia has submitted an application to the Building Inspector to allow the construction of a one story addition at the rear of the existing building which will increase existing building coverage 7% to a total build- ing coverage of 42% together with plans ; and WHEREAS, the Building Inspector has refused to issue such permit on the grounds that the plans submitted failed to comply with the Zoning Ordi- nance of the Town of Mamaroneck with particular reference to Article VII Section 89-41 Subsec- tion A (3) "Construction Requirements for a "B" Business District" which requires a maximum build- ing coverage of 25% on the premises located at 1395 Boston Post Road and known on the Tax Assessment Map of the Town of Mamaroneck as Block 411 Parcel 224; and WHEREAS, Mrs. Frank LaMantia has submitted to this Board an application for a variance on the ground of practical difficulty and/or un- necessary hardship for the following reasons : 1 . Because of the severe competition in the automotive parts business the applicant needs to maintain a mass- ive inventory to supply customer' s demands immediately. 2. The addition will house the deli- very vehicles overnight to protect them from theft and vandals. WHEREAS, this Board has examined the plans , reviewed the application and has heard all per- sons interested in this application after pub- lication of a notice thereof, NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that this Board denied the applica- tion on the following grounds : 1 . The applicant' s hardship was mainly for protection from vandals and a fence will solve that problem. 2. The Board is concerned about the growth of the business and what will happen to the building when there is no more room at the present site. 3. There are no special circumstances or conditions applying to the land for which the variance is sought, which circumstances or conditions are peculiar to such land and which do not apply generally to land in the district. 4. That the facts and circumstances claimed by the applicant to entitle him to the variance are not such as would deprive the applicant of the reasonable use of the land. 5. That the granting of the variance would not be in harmony with the gen- eral purposes and intent of this Ordi- nance and would be injurious to the neighborhood and detrimental to the 1 �� public welfare. FURTHER RESOLVED, that this decision be filed with the Town Clerk in accordance with Section 267 of the Town Law. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before this meet- ing it was adjourned at 9:15 P.M. i �( Rita A. Johnson , (Secretary