Planning & Zoning Board

February 24, 2015 WHEATON PLANNING AND ZONING BOARD I. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL VOTE Chair Schwarze called the February 24, 2015 Wheaton Planning and Zoning Board meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the Wheaton City Hall, 303 W. Wesley Street. Upon roll call, the following were: Roll Call Vote Present: Bob Gudmundson Linda Johnson Mark Plunkett Patricia Schwarze Scott Weller Absent: Chris Derrick Suzanne Fitch City Staff Present: Tracy Jones, Staff Planner II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - SEPTEMBER 23, 2014 The minutes were approved as presented. III. PUBLIC COMMENT There was none. IV. NEW BUSINESS ZA #15-02/ LOT WIDTH VARIATION/ 913 NORTH WHEATON AVENUE/ CAPSTONE CUSTOM HOMES, LLC Pursuant to notice duly published on February 6, 2015 and letters mailed to neighboring property owners on February 4, 2015, Chair Schwarze called to order the February 24, 2015 public hearing requesting a variation to Article 3 of the Wheaton Zoning Ordinance to allow the construction and use of a new single family home on the property located at 913 North Wheaton Avenue, following the demolition of the existing home, with a lot width of 44.0 feet in lieu of the required 50.0 feet. Ernest Siefert Jr., 211 East Illinois Street, Wheaton was sworn in. Mr. Siefert stated that he represented Capstone Custom Homes, LLC. Mr. Siefert stated that Capstone Custom Homes, LLC is requesting a variation to Article 3 of the Wheaton Zoning Ordinance to allow the construction and use of a new single family home on the property located at 913 North Wheaton Avenue, following the demolition of the existing home, with a lot width of 44.0 feet in lieu of the required 50.0 feet. The applicant intends to comply with all setback, height, floor area ratio and lot coverage requirements. The proposed home actually exceeds the side yard setback requirements of a 50.0 foot wide lot. Mr. Siefert stated that Capstone Custom Homes, LLC is proposing the construction of a new two-story single family home with an attached front loading garage on the existing 44.0 foot wide lot. Since the property is located in the Northside Residential Overlay District (NROD), there are existing zoning requirements in place to minimize the appearance of the attached front loading garage and the garage has been designed to meet these requirements. Per Article 28 of the Wheaton Zoning Ordinance, the attached front loading garage has been designed to be five feet behind the front face of the home and to be only 20.0 feet in width. In addition, the entire square footage of the attached front loading garage will be included when calculating the floor area ratio for the lot.  Wheaton Planning and Zoning Board February 24, 2015 Page - 2 - of 3 Mr. Siefert addressed the variation standards as required by the Wheaton Zoning Ordinance. He stated that the proposed variation would not be detrimental to the public health, safety, morals, comfort, convenience or general welfare of the neighboring property owners. He added that the proposed home would be an improvement over the existing home located on the subject property that is currently vacant and in significant disrepair. Joe Gorup, 917 North Wheaton Avenue, Wheaton was sworn in. Mr. Gorup stated that he was the adjacent property owner to the north. He added that he was opposed to granting the proposed lot width variation based on the proposed width of the home and the attached front loading garage component of the design. Joan Wegrzyn, 218 West Forest Avenue, Wheaton was sworn in. Ms. Wegrzyn stated that she was a neighboring property owner. She added that she was also opposed to the attached front loading garage component of the design. Leigh Ann Jarrett, 911 North Wheaton Avenue, Wheaton was sworn in. Ms. Jarrett stated that she was the adjacent property owner to the south. She added that while she was also opposed to the attached front loading garage component of the design, she understood that it met the zoning requirements in the Northside Residential Overlay District (NROD). Mr. Weller questioned whether a detached garage had been considered. Mr. Siefert explained that a detached garage would be difficult on this lot given the presence of an existing depressional storage area on the back of the property. Mr. Gudmundson questioned the lot width of 911 North Wheaton Avenue. Staff Planner Jones stated that is was similar in size to the subject property. Mr. Weller moved and then Mr. Plunkett seconded the motion to close the public hearing. On a voice vote, all voted aye. The Board decided to vote this evening. Mr. Weller moved and then Ms. Johnson seconded the motion to approve a variation to Article 3 of the Wheaton Zoning Ordinance to allow the construction and use of a new single family home on the property located at 913 North Wheaton Avenue, following the demolition of the existing home, with a lot width of 44.0 feet in lieu of the required 50.0 feet as presented. Roll Call Vote Ayes: Bob Gudmundson Linda Johnson Mark Plunkett Patricia Schwarze Scott Weller Nays: None Absent: Chris Derrick Suzanne Fitch Motion Passed Unanimously  Wheaton Planning and Zoning Board February 24, 2015 Page - 3 - of 3 Several of the Board members requested that Mr. Siefert fine-tune the exterior design and possibly the floor plan of the proposed home to blend within the neighborhood as much as reasonably possible. V. MISCELLANEOUS The Board briefly discussed the Wheaton College long-range plan informational meeting that was held on Tuesday, February 17, 2015. VI. ADJOURNMENT Mr. Weller moved and then Ms. Johnson seconded the motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:00 p.m. On a voice vote, all voted aye. Respectfully submitted, Tracy L. Jones, Staff Planner