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CITY OF MUSKEGON
ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
REGULAR MEETING
DATE OF MEETING: Tuesday, April 8, 2025
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 February 11, 2025.
III. Public Hearings
A. Hearing, Case 2025-03: Request for a variance from Section 2316 of the zoning
ordinance to allow a parking area in the front yard at 3300 Lakeshore Drive.
IV. New Business
V. Old Business
VI. Other
VII. Adjourn
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Muskegon, MI 49440
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CITY OF MUSKEGON
ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
STAFF REPORT
April 8, 2025
Hearing, Case 2025-03: Request for a variance from Section 2316 of the zoning ordinance to
allow a parking area in the front yard at 3300 Lakeshore Drive.
SUMMARY
1. The property at 3300 Lakeshore Dr was recently split, but the official zoning maps do not
yet show the new lot boundaries. The new lot contains the garage while the original lot
contains the house. The zoning map and aerial map on the following page show the
approximate lot split.
2. The property is zoned R, Neighborhood Residential.
3. Section 2316 of the zoning ordinance states “Residential parking areas for boats, trailers,
motor vehicles, and recreation equipment shall not be located in any front yard. This
section shall not prohibit direct access drive parking of automobiles on paved, established
driveways.”
4. The applicant is proposing an extension of the driveway to the west, which would be
considered front yard parking. Please see the site plan that was denied on the following
pages.
5. There does appear to be enough room behind the front of the house to install a “hammer
head” turnaround. This could be placed anywhere in the gray area on the denied site plan
without the need for a variance. Also, the area to the west of the garage (where the red
trailer is visible in the below photo) could be paved for additional parking.
6. Notification was sent to every property within 300 feet of this address. At the time of this
writing, staff had not received any public comments.
3300 Lakeshore Dr (house on the right) and the recently split lot with garage (left).
Zoning Map
Original lot line in red. Recent lot split (approximate) in blue.
Aerial Map
Denied Site Plan
The pavement area highlighted in gray is allowed because it is behind the front of the house.
Anything north of this area would also allow for parking. The pavement area highlighted in red
is not allowed because it is considered front yard parking due to its location in front of the house.
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 a variance from Section 2316 of the zoning ordinance to allow a
parking area in the front yard at 3300 Lakeshore Drive be (approved/denied) based on the review
standards in Section 2502 of the Zoning Ordinance.
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