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CITY OF MUSKEGON
ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
REGULAR MEETING
DATE OF MEETING: Tuesday, December 10, 2024
TIME OF MEETING: 4:00 p.m.
PLACE OF MEETING: City Hall Commission Chambers, First Floor, Muskegon City Hall
AGENDA
I. Roll Call
II. Approval of Minutes of the Regular Meeting of November 12, 2024.
III. Public Hearings
A. Hearing, Case 2024-06: Request for variances from Section 404 of the Zoning Ordinance
to construct a new home on a 2,500-square-foot lot, with a rear setback of 7 feet, at 2125
Beidler Street.
B. Hearing, Case 2024-08: Request for a variance from Section 2316 of the zoning
ordinance to allow a parking area in the front yard, and from Section 404 to exceed the
maximum pavement coverage of 15% allowed, at 2035 Letart Avenue.
IV. New Business
V. Old Business
VI. Other
VII. Adjourn
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CITY OF MUSKEGON
ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
STAFF REPORT
Tuesday, December 10, 2024
Hearing, Case 2024-06: Request for variances from Section 404 of the Zoning Ordinance to
construct a new home on a 2,500-square-foot lot, with a rear setback of 7 feet, at 2125 Beidler
Street.
SUMMARY
1. The property is zoned R-2, Medium Density Single-Family Residential. The lot is
considered non-conforming because it does not meet the minimum lot size requirement of
4,000 sf. The lot measures 2,500 sf (62.5’x 40’). The house is considered non-conforming
because it does not meet the minimum setback requirement of 15 feet. The lot is described
as the north half of lot 13, Block 5.
2. The applicant would like to demo the existing house on site and rebuild. Please see the
enclosed site plan. The plan would need a variance from the minimum lot size requirement
and the rear setback requirement. The minimum rear lot setback requirement is 15 feet, this
plan proposes a 7-foot rear setback. All other setbacks and zoning requirements would be
met.
3. Please see the responses to the zoning questionnaire on the following pages.
4. Notice was sent to everyone within 300 feet of the property. At the time of this writing,
staff had received one comment from the public. Please see the enclosed email.
2125 Beidler St
Zoning Map
Aerial Map
Answers Provided to Variance Questionnaire
REVIEW STANDARDS
Questions to consider when reviewing a variance request:
a. Are there are exceptional or extraordinary circumstances or conditions applying to the
property in question or to the intended use of the property that do not apply generally to
other properties or class of uses in the same zoning district?
b. Is the dimensional variance necessary for the preservation and enjoyment of a
substantial property right possessed by other properties in the same zoning district and in
the vicinity?
c. Will the authorizing of such dimensional variance be of substantial detriment to adjacent
properties?
d. Is the alleged difficulty caused by the ordinance and not by any person presently having
an interest in the property, or by any previous owner?
e. Is the alleged difficulty founded solely upon the opportunity to make the property more
profitable or to reduce expense to the owner?
f. Is the requested variance the minimum action required to eliminate the difficulty?
DELIBERATION:
The following motion is offered for consideration:
I move that the request for variances from Section 404 of the Zoning Ordinance to construct a
new home on a 2,500-square-foot lot, with a rear setback of 7 feet, at 2125 Beidler St be
(approved/denied) based on the review standards in Section 2502 of the Zoning Ordinance.
Hearing, Case 2024-08: Request for a variance from Section 2316 of the zoning ordinance to
allow a parking area in the front yard, and from Section 404 to exceed the maximum pavement
coverage of 15% allowed, at 2035 Letart Avenue.
SUMMARY
1. The property is zoned R-1, Neighborhood Residential. The parking pad has already been
installed and the variance request is coming in after the fact.
2. There is a paved parking space in the rear of the property off of the alley, but the position
of the shed makes it difficult to add another parking space. The proposed parking space in
the front of the house does not meet the ordinance standards because it does not extend at
least 18 feet past the front of the house, which makes it considered front yard parking. The
side setback of the house is too small to allow for a parking space on the side of the house.
3. The existing parking pad in the rear measures 415 sf. The property measures 5,187 sf,
which allows up 1,037 (20% of lot) sf of pavement. The new parking pad in the front
measures 287 sf, for a total of 622 sf of pavement. The zoning ordinance was recently
amended to allow up to 20% of pavement coverage on a lot, so the variance for the
pavement allotment is no longer needed.
4. There is no sidewalk in the front, but if one were to ever be installed, it appears that a car
parked on the pad would not hang over the sidewalk.
5. Please see the responses to the zoning questionnaire on the following pages.
6. Notice was sent to everyone within 300 feet of the property. At the time of this writing,
staff had not received any public comments.
2035 Letart Ave
Zoning Map
Aerial Map
Answers Provided to Variance Questionnaire
REVIEW STANDARDS
Questions to consider when reviewing a variance request:
g. Are there are exceptional or extraordinary circumstances or conditions applying to the
property in question or to the intended use of the property that do not apply generally to
other properties or class of uses in the same zoning district?
h. Is the dimensional variance necessary for the preservation and enjoyment of a
substantial property right possessed by other properties in the same zoning district and in
the vicinity?
i. Will the authorizing of such dimensional variance be of substantial detriment to adjacent
properties?
j. Is the alleged difficulty caused by the ordinance and not by any person presently having
an interest in the property, or by any previous owner?
k. Is the alleged difficulty founded solely upon the opportunity to make the property more
profitable or to reduce expense to the owner?
l. Is the requested variance the minimum action required to eliminate the difficulty?
DELIBERATION:
The following motion is offered for consideration:
I move that the request for a variance from Section 2316 of the zoning ordinance to allow a
parking area in the front yard, be (approved/denied) based on the review standards in Section
2502 of the Zoning Ordinance.
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