https://sleepyhollow.localarchives.org/files/original/4a868bdbe14737c8bb127646e2c350e3.pdf cce8dbd7573b2c0c8fceff5bf2cbb534 PDF Text Text Village of Sleepy Hollow Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting September 20, 2023 Chairman Timothy Church called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM Present: Timothy Church, Chairman Carol Lyden Craig Lis Margaret Rubick Thomas Chang Gorete Crowe Also Present: Sean McCarthy, Village Architect Pamela Kroll, Secretary to the Zoning Board Absent: Sandra Tripp Agenda: 1) Joseph Fernandes, 33 Gorey Brook Road, Proposed 1-1/2 story two-car garage addition- Public hearing 2) Sandra Tripp, 34 New Broadway, Proposed one-story open deck addition- Public hearing 3) Fior Rodriguez, 44 Howard Street, Proposed two-story enclosed porch additionPublic hearing 4) Approval of minutes, July 26, 2023 1. Joseph Fernandes, 33 Gorey Brook Road, Proposed 1-1/2 story two-car garage additionPublic hearing Chairman Church read the public notice, listed the documents submitted with the application, and asked Sean McCarthy to confirm that the Building Department received the mailing receipts. Sean McCarthy stated that the Building Department received proof of the mailing. Chairman Church invited the applicant to present the application. Samuel Vieira stated that he is the architect for the proposed project. Mr. Vieira stated that the applicant proposes to remove the existing one-car, single-story garage and construct a two-car garage with a pitched roof to provide more depth and width for cars and eliminate parking cars on the street. Mr. Vieira stated that the odd-shaped lot and steep elevations result in an exposed foundation and higher square footage calculations. Mr. Vieira presented drawings outlining the property lines and buildable lot area and explained the existing non-conformities of the house. 1 (ZBA 9/20/2023) �Mr. Vieira stated there are no proposed changes to the existing non-conforming north side yard or the south corner of the property. Craig Lis asked Mr. Vieira to confirm that the corner of the existing garage encroaches on the front yard setback. Mr. Vieira stated that the corner of the existing garage does not comply with the front yard setback, and the proposed extension/addition will further encroach into the setback. The proposed addition will maintain the back line of the main house and will not extend further into the rear yard setback. There are no other alternative locations for the garage. Chairman Church asked Mr. Vieira to confirm the depth of the stucco existing garage. Mr. Vieira stated that the inside depth of the existing garage is 16 feet. The proposed garage has an inside depth of 20 feet. Gorete Crowe asked Mr. Vieira if the proposed garage would affect the driveway entrance. Mr. Vieira stated that there are no changes proposed to the driveway entrance. The applicant proposes to remove the existing patio surfaces and replace with asphalt to widen the driveway and allow cars to pull into each garage bay. Chairman Church asked Mr. Vieira if the application proposes changes to the retaining wall on the east side of the property. Mr. Vieira stated that the existing wall is part of the garage roof. The applicant proposes reinforcing the stone retaining wall with concrete to shore up and level with the new garage. Gorette Crowe asked if the retaining wall would be higher than the existing shrubbery along Gorey Brook Road. Mr. Vieira stated that the second retaining wall along Gorey Brook Road and the greenery would screen the garage structure. Chairman Church asked Mr. Vieira if the garage attic would be a habitable space. Mr. Vieira stated that the garage attic space would be used for storage only. Chairman Church solicited comments from the Board. There were no further comments from the Board. Chairman Church moved to open the public hearing. Moved: Church Seconded: Lis 2 Vote 6-0 (ZBA 9/20/2023) �Chairman Church solicited comments from the public. The Board received written comments from James J. O’Connell, the owner of 130 New Broadway, on September 19, 2023, supporting the application. (See Exhibit #1) There were no additional comments from the public. Chairman Church moved to close the public hearing. Moved: Church Seconded: Crowe Vote 6-0 Chairman Church proposed granting the requested variances based on the following criteria: 1. The requested variances will not produce an undesirable change in the neighborhood or be a detriment to nearby properties. The elevation, retaining wall, and bushes will screen the garage view from the street. The applicant is not proposing to push the west boundary line. The extension of the garage will align with the main house. The proposed extension will not be visible due to the topography of the property lot. The proposed garage roof will be lower than the current garage. The adjacent neighbor supports the application. 2. There is no other feasible method to achieve the benefit sought by the applicant due to the topography of the property lot. 3. The requested variances are not substantial as they relate to extending the existing nonconforming conditions. 4. Granting of the area variances will not cause an impact on the physical or environmental conditions of the neighborhood as improvements to the retaining wall are proposed. 5. Although the requested variances are self-created, there are other factors the Board considers when granting a variance. Chairman Church moved to approve the application. Moved: Church Seconded: Lyden Timothy Church, Chairman - yes Margaret Rubick - yes Carol Lyden- yes Craig Lis - yes Thomas Chang - yes Gorete Crowe - yes Vote 6-0 APPROVED 3 (ZBA 9/20/2023) �2. Sandra Tripp, 34 New Broadway, Proposed one-story open deck addition - Public hearing Chairman Church read the public notice, listed the documents submitted with the application, and asked Sean McCarthy to confirm that the Building Department received the mailing receipts. Sean McCarthy stated that the Building Department received proof of the mailing. Chairman Church invited the applicant to present the application. Amanda Linhart stated that she is the Architect representing the applicant. Ms. Linhart stated that the application proposes to extend and connect to the existing covered front porch by constructing an open deck in the side yard. The existing covered front porch is non-conforming in the front yard setback, and the proposed deck would extend into the front yard setback. The width of the proposed deck encroaching in the front yard setback is 8 feet, 8 inches. Chairman Church asked Ms. Linhart to confirm that no variance is required for the side yard setback. Ms. Linhart stated that the proposed deck does not require a variance for the side yard setback. Chairman Church solicited questions from the Board. There were no questions from the Board. Chairman Church moved to open the public hearing. Moved: Church Seconded: Lis Vote 6-0 Chairman Church solicited comments from the public. There were no other public comments. Chairman Church moved to close the public hearing. Moved: Church Seconded: Lyden Vote 6-0 Chairman Church proposed granting the requested variances based on the following criteria: 1. Granting the requested variances will not produce an undesirable change in the neighborhood's character as the proposed deck extends the existing non-conformity of the front yard setback. The houses on the street have similar setbacks. 2. Granting of the requested variances will not cause an impact on the physical or environmental conditions of the neighborhood. 3. The requested variances are not substantial. 4 (ZBA 9/20/2023) �4. Although the requested variances are self-created, there are other factors the Board considers when granting a variance. Chairman Church moved to approve the application. Moved: Church Seconded: Rubick Timothy Church, Chairman - yes Margaret Rubick - yes Craig Lis - yes Carol Lyden- yes Gorete Crowe- yes Thomas Chang - yes Vote 6-0 APPROVED 3. Fior Rodriguez, 44 Howard Street, Proposed two-story enclosed porch addition - Public hearing Chairman Church read the public notice, listed the documents submitted with the application, and asked Sean McCarthy to confirm that the Building Department received the mailing receipts. Sean McCarthy stated that the Building Department received proof of the mailing. Chairman Church invited the applicant to present the application. David Arango is an associate of Rui F. Arraiano & Associates, LLC, and stated that he representing the applicant. Mr. Arango stated that the application proposes to construct a porch addition to an existing non-conforming house. Mr. Arango stated they are requesting a variance for the side yard setbacks and the building coverage. Mr. Arango presented drawings and existing condition photographs and described the details of the proposed proposed porch addition. Mr. Arango stated that the existing porch is 6 feet wide and aligned with the house in the setback. The application proposes to add 9 feet to the existing structure to be 14 feet long by 15 feet, 6 inches wide. Chairman Church asked Mr. Arango to confirm if a variance is required for the east and south sides of the property for the porch. Mr. Arango stated that a variance is not required for the rear yard setback. A variance is required for the west side yard to construct the porch, and no variance is required for the east or south sides. Chairman Church asked Mr. Arango for the distance between the existing porch and the west side neighboring property line. 5 (ZBA 9/20/2023) �Mr. Arango stated that there is 1-foot between the existing porch and the property line. They will remove the windows from that side of the addition and fireproof the wall as required by the Fire Code. Chairman Church asked Mr. Arango to confirm the requested variances for the garage. Mr. Arango stated that the garage is an existing non-conforming structure, and no changes are proposed. Chairman Church asked Mr. Arango how the applicant would access the second-floor porch and how the porch addition compares with the existing house roofline. Mr. Arango stated that there are doors and interior stairs for porch access. The porch roof would be lower than the main house roofline. Chairman Church stated that the porches would not be visible from the sidewalk. Thomas Chang asked Mr. Arango what rooms lead to the porches. Mr. Arango stated that the porches lead from the kitchens on each floor. Chairman Church moved to open the public hearing. Moved: Church Seconded: Crowe Vote 6-0 Chairman Church solicited comments from the public. There were no public comments. Chairman Church moved to close the public hearing. Moved: Church Seconded: Lis Vote 6-0 Chairman Church proposed granting the requested variances based on the following criteria: 1. Granting the requested variances will not produce an undesirable change in the neighborhood's character, as the building size is comparable with the neighboring properties. The proposed porch addition follows the footprint of the existing house. The porch addition will not be visible from the sidewalk. 2. The proposed application is a feasible method to achieve the benefits sought by the Applicant, and the length of the addition is minimal because of the use of interior stairs. 3. The requested variances are not substantial due to the existing non-conforming conditions of the property. 6 (ZBA 9/20/2023) �4. Granting of the requested variances will not cause an impact on the physical or environmental conditions of the neighborhood. 5. Although the requested variances are self-created, there are other factors the Board considers when granting a variance. Chairman Church moved to approve the application. Moved: Church Seconded: Lis Timothy Church, Chairman - yes Margaret Rubick - yes Craig Lis - yes Carol Lyden- yes Gorete Crowe- yes Thomas Chang - yes Vote 6-0 APPROVED 4. Approval of minutes - July 26, 2023 Chairman Church moved to approve the July 26, 2023 minutes as amended. Moved: Church Seconded: Lis Timothy Church, Chairman - yes Margaret Rubick - yes Craig Lis - yes Carol Lyden- yes Thomas Chang -yes Gorete Crowe- yes Vote 6-0 APPROVED Chairman Church moved to close the meeting at 7:45 PM. Moved: Church Seconded: Lis Vote 6-0 Respectfully Submitted, Pamela Kroll Secretary to the Zoning Board of Appeals 7 (ZBA 9/20/2023) �Exhibit #1 Marble Hill School for International Studies 99 Terrace View Avenue, Bronx, New York 10463 Kirsten Larson, Principal Paul W. Parris, Assistant Principal Wanda Dingman, Assistant Principal September 2023 Zoning Board of Appeals Village of Sleepy Hollow, I am writing this letter in support of the application submitted by Joseph Fernandes seeking approval to construct a 1-½ story garage at 33 Gory Brook Road in the R-4 zoning district. I have lived at 130 New Broadway with my wife, Amy, and two children, Merryn and James, for 12 years. My property is diagonally adjacent to 33 Gory Brook. For most of that time the property has been an eye sore derelict. Since Mr. Fernandes purchased the property, he has tirelessly and diligently worked to improve the house and yard. The appearance is well kept and an appealing part of the neighborhood. I believe Mr. Fernandes’ proposal will further improve the property and the neighborhood. It will also alleviate some congestion in street parking. Sincerely, James J. O’Connell Resident 130 New Broadway Webber Park joconnell@marblehillschool.org (718) 561-0973 Fax: (718) 561- 5612 www.marblehillschool.org Magnet School for International Studies � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Zoning Board Minutes & Resolutions-2023 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource MINS_ZONING_2023-09-20_Approved ZBA Minutes Subject The topic of the resource Zoning Board Minutes & Resolutions-2023 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2023 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Village of Sleepy Hollow All Rights Reserved. Type The nature or genre of the resource Text