Ordinance 1st reading:  7/0

The applicant, Trevor Larson, is requesting an amendment to the City's Zoning Ordinance to establish a separate rear yard building set-back for accessory structures within the City's R-S, Suburban Residential District.  The rear yard building set-back requirements within the R-S District do not currently distinguish between permitted residential structures and accessory structures like detached garages, sheds and shops.  The current rear yard building set-back in the R-S District is 40 feet, with some exceptions for garages with alley access.

The applicant would like to build a shop in his back yard with access along the side of his house and front yard driveway access.  A platted alley does not exist behind his lot.  His property is zoned R-S, Suburban Residential District.  The existing rear yard building set-back within the R-S District is 40 feet, and does not distinguish between permitted residential uses and accessory uses.

This situation has arisen several times in the City's R-S zoning district.  When reviewing plot plans for accessory structures for detached garages, shops and sheds, City staff often rejects the proposed plot plan due to the excessive size requirement of the 40-ft rear yard set-back in the R-S district.

The R-S district is the only residential zoning district that does not provide a separate building rear yard set-back requirement for accessory structures.  City Staff believes this is an oversight, since separate rear yard building set-backs for accessory structures are defined within the City's R-R, Rural Residential Zoning District, which is a less dense zoning district.  (Minimum lot size in the City's R-S district is 22,000 sf vs. 43,560 sf in the City's R-R district.)

City staff supports a zoning text amendment to replace Section 6.c.(6)(c) of the City's Zoning Ordinance which currently reads:

(c)  Rear Yard.  Forty feet (40'); provided however, that a garage entered from an alley may be located not closer than ten feet (10') from the alley line.

with the following, amended text:

(c)  Rear Yard.

(1) Structures Containing Permitted Uses.  Forty feet (40').

(2) Structures Containing Accessory Uses Only.  Ten Feet (10').

Staff recommends approval of the proposed Zoning Text Amendment.