ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
TOWN OF CANAAN
COLUMBIA COUNTY, NEW YORK
October 30, 2007

Present: David Cooper, John Stelling, Ann Pearce, Jean Dickason
Absent: Pat Liddle

Chairman Cooper called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. with two people in the audience. Motion by Ann Pearce to accept the August minutes as submitted with 2nd by John Stelling. All in favor.

There are two files for review. Mr. Cooper read File 2007-8 by James H. Simmons. The filed is deemed incomplete for the following reasons:
No property location.
The Board desires to know the mileage in from County 5 to the site.
The street address of the property.
How will the lot be marked…by a flag?
The Building Permit is undated.
No plot plan. The structure should be located on the lot with the setbacks and all pertinent details.
The Board requests a narrative that describes how the house will appear from the various vantage points around it and why they are building a tower.

The Board deduced that the amount of height variance requested is 14 feet, which equals 40%. Chairman Cooper asked Mr. Simmons’ representative, Andrew Howard, Esq., to arrange a demonstration of the legal height of 35 feet and the desired height of 49 feet, perhaps done with balloons set on the spot where the tower will be, on a pre-arranged date. On that date Mr. Howard is requested to also flag the four corners of the house. It will be near the top of the hill based on the topographical map. Mr. Howard indicated the house will be set on seven acres. Mr. Cooper indicated the Board is concerned about the footprint and height. We want the setbacks because some parts of sites can’t be built on and builders end up having to place the structure too close to neighbors. The Board doesn’t want to go through the whole process to find that when the structure is built, it is something else.

There are two key questions: (1) How does the structure look on the property? And (2) How will it appear from a distance? Mr. Howard stated that Kate Johns will be the Architect and she will provide input.

Mr. Cooper asked Mr. Howard to arrange a date for the balloon viewing before the hearing date of November 27, 2007. In response to John Stelling’s question, Mr. Howard indicated that the lot has not yet been cleared.

Motion by John Stelling with 2nd by Jean Dickason to accept the file on the condition that the above enumerated items are provided within 15 days of the hearing date, except for the balloon test which can be done any time before the hearing. All in favor.

Chairman Cooper asked the clerk to send file to the Canaan Planning Board before their November meeting for their comments. This file does not require a County Planning Board referral.

Chairman Cooper read the next file, 2007-9 by Amy Barrett. The Zoning Officer wants the ZBA to make a decision as to whether the structure can be built without an area variance. The Zoning Law says it would be all right as long as the front-yard setback doesn’t get smaller. They can’t exacerbate a non-conforming setback without a variance. The Board needs to know the distance that the existing house is from the rear boundary line. John Stelling asked if the existing house has a basement. If not, the new house would be a different level of construction.

The abutters should be those located 500 feet from the outer edge (“all the meets and bounds”), not the center, of the site. Motion by David Cooper with 2nd by Ann Pearce to accept the file without contingencies, with the hearing to be conducted on November 27, 2007. All in favor.

Motion by David Cooper to hold the December meeting on December 18th if we get files with 2nd by Jean Dickason. All in favor. Clerk will inform the Zoning Officer, Planning Board and Town Board and will post on the bulletin board and web site.

Motion by Ann Pearce with 2nd by John Stelling to adjourn at 8:17 p.m.

For the Zoning Board of Appeals,



Julie Alexander
Clerk

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