TOWN OF NORTH HARMONY
ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
WEDNESDAY, 7/22/2015, 7:00 PM
ZBA MEMBERS PRESENT: Jim Levesque Dick Barton Louise Ortman
Dan Thomas Greg Michalak Roger Vaillancourt
Helen Emick
Brad Lawson, Zoning C.E.O.
Dave Stapleton, Attorney
Others Present: Fred Wilson Tricia Fenstermacher Tod Ingersoll
John Barbagallo Kathy Barbagallo Robert Kanouff
Joseph Cronin George Lohr Sally Carlson
Clayton Emick
Mr. Stapleton swore in all who expressed intent to speak regarding the cases before the board of appeals. Board Member Helen Emick recused herself from participation on the first case to be heard as she and Mr. Emick are the applicants.
1. Clayton & Helen Emick requesting a Special Permit to install a gravel/cement pad and place a seasonal recreational vehicle 12’ x 36’ at property located in the R-1 District at 5224 Stow Ferry Rd., Stow, NY, Specifically Section 332.12-1-50 (old #19-1-10).
Mrs. Emick said they would like to put an RV on property at Stow Ferry Rd. She said it would be a temporary dwelling and would be occupied no more than 14 days and meets all criteria. She said this was a request for financial reasons at this time. Mr. Levesque asked what the temporary nature of the application is. Mrs. Emick said the park model RV is on wheels and will stay on wheels and can be moved at anytime. Mr. Levesque asked if it would be moved off the property at the end of the summer. Mrs. Emick said no, it would be left on the property permanently. She said zoning allows permanent placement of a seasonal recreational unit. She said this is so their son and his family will have a place to stay. Mrs. Ortman asked if there was any plan to put a home on the lot in the future (next 3 years). Mrs. Emick said she could not answer that as they do not know what their future financial position will be. Mr. Lawson said he has talked to the Emick’s about this and described the RV as a park model unit that is much larger than a tow behind recreational vehicle. There was discussion of the dimensions of the RV (11’x36’) and it was noted that to move it would require over width road permission. Mrs. Emick said it still meets the RV criteria of being less than 600 sq. ft. Mr. Lawson said it is the type of Park Model you see at Camp Chautauqua. Mr. Thomas asked if there would be a deck on it. Mrs. Emick said yes, there is a porch on it but it is detachable. Mrs. Ortman noted that zoning prohibits the installation of permanent utilities to temporary dwellings. Mrs. Emick said that there would be none installed as they already exist (well and septic) and they would hook up to the septic and well. Mr. Levesque referred to page 101, Section C. Conditions, 3. Utilities; in reference to electric. Mr. Lawson said typically for an RV there is a meter installed on a utility pole and that the RV plugs into it. Mr. Stapleton said this does apply to the application because you are hooking up permanently to septic and well and an RV hauls its own waste and water and can use its own electric. Mr. Levesque said there is no relevance between an R-1 District and Camp Chautauqua. Mr. Emick said the board had approved the almost identical application of Mr. McCain in the AG district in May, 2010. Mrs. Emick said they felt the approval of the application would be an upgrade to the neighborhood and provided photos of conditions that currently exist in the area that are a detriment. Mr. Thomas said the permanent nature of the RV vs. one that is moved, etc. is a concern. Mrs. Emick said she had been assured that the unit is easily movable with a ½ – ¾ ton truck. Mr. Thomas read page 25 of Zoning Code Section 202, Definitions, Recreational Vehicle for those present. There was further general discussion of the application. Mr.
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Levesque said this is one of those instances when the board must look at the intent of the code and how it is interpreted. He said this is very important in the R-1 district that the interpretation by the board members is correct both for the applicant and the public. Mrs. Ortman asked is there is anything in the Comprehensive Plan that would clarify this for the board. Mr. Lawson said he does not believe so and in his opinion the Park Model does not meet the definition of travel trailer or RV. He said in his experience the Park Model is not easily moved. Mr. Emick said the zoning regulations are not clear. There was lengthy discussion of the law and its interpretation. Mr. Levesque asked if anyone wished to speak regarding the application. Mr. Levesque reviewed Zoning Code Section 905, Special Use Permit; Standards a. b. c. & d. Mrs. Emick stated that they felt the proposed application meets all criteria; does not infringe on anyone; property will be improved and well maintained; it is located away from the lake; and is a large parcel.
Mr. Levesque motioned to grant a Special Use Permit to Clayton & Helen Emick to install a gravel/cement pad and place a seasonal recreational vehicle 12’ x 36’ at property located in the R-1 District at 5224 Stow Ferry Rd., Stow, NY, Specifically Section 332.12-1-50 (old #19-1-10) as outlined in the application and minutes with the following conditions:
• Full skirting be installed on the unit
• Shrub plantings at 4’
Mr. Michalak seconded. No (6): Levesque, Barton, Michalak, Thomas, Ortman, Vaillancourt. Yes (0). The application was denied unanimously.
Mrs. Emick resumed her seat on the board at 8:10.
2. Joseph Cronin requesting a Special Permit to place an roof with open deck over a travel trailer located at property known as Lakeside Campground and owned by Robert Kanouff, at 3280 Hadley Bay Road (site # 34), Specifically Section 332.20-1-35 (old # 21-1-31).
Mr. Cronin said he would like to construct a steel roof over an existing travel trailer and a construct a 10’ x 31’ deck with a roof over. Mr. Kanouff, owner of the campground said he has no issue with the application. Mr. Levesque asked if there were any setback issues with the roof over. Mr. Kanouff said no. Mr. Thomas noted that the deck is larger than the travel trailer and asked if that is normal. Mr. Kanouff said decks are not allowed to be any longer than the unit and cannot exceed 10’ is width. Mr. Kanouff said the Chautauqua Co. Dept. of Health regulates the lot size at minimum 2,500 sq. ft. with 10’ between units. Mr. Levesque asked if there was any intent to enclose the deck. Mr. Cronin said no. Mr. Lawson said the board had previously requested that Mr. Kanouff number the lots and provide a map with those numbered lots. He said this is very important information for him and the fire department. Mr. Lawson also brought to the board’s attention the impervious areas (roofs) that are being created in the watershed and noted that this needs to be addressed in relation to runoff and drainage.
Mr. Levesque motioned to grant a Special Use Permit to Joseph Cronin to place a roof with an open deck over a travel trailer located at property known as Lakeside Campground and owned by Robert Kanouff, at 3280 Hadley Bay Road (site # 34), Specifically Section 332.20-1-35 (old # 21-1-31) as outlined in the application and minutes with the following conditions:
• Applicant have his lot numbered and Mr. Kanouff have all lots visibly numbered no later than August 31, 2015.
• Complete map with lot numbers provided to the C.E.O.
Mr. Barton seconded. The motion was carried unanimously.
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3. Tricia Fenstermacher requesting an Area Variance to build a 2 story addition onto an existing home closer to setbacks than allowed in the R-1 District and located at 3312 Highland Dr., Specifically Section 349.16-1-34.
Mr. Ingersoll, Contractor, appeared to represent Ms. Fenstermacher. Mr. Ingersoll said they would like to lift the existing 1 ½ story cottage and place a full foundation under it and also add a two story addition 20’ x 16.6’. Mr. Lawson said the lot size is 28.3’ wide and approximately 203’ long (4,496 sq. ft. or .10 acre). Mr. Ingersoll said the house size would go from 976 sq. ft. to 1,556 sq. ft. (- garage located on opposite side of road). The site plan map shows side setbacks of 2.4’ and 2.3’. Mr. Barbagallo said he had submitted a letter regarding the application and asked that the board record it. He said that they feel this is a significant addition and is outside what is acceptable as far as setbacks. He said they had purchased their cottage as an investment and had done work on it without requiring any variances. Mr. Thomas read the letter from the Barbagallo’s into the record. Mr. Lawson said his calculations indicate that the proposed project is over the 25% lot coverage allowed of 1,522 (does not include garage located on opposite side of road). Mr. Ingersoll said they are only increasing the height of the home to what the highest existing portion of the roof is now. He stated that he and his client are asking for what they would like, but would comply with what the board would allow in this case. Mrs. Emick said she had been to the site and most of the buildings are small summer cottages and she was not sure that this project was in line. Mrs. Barbagallo said their concerns are: aesthetically it does not fit in a cottage community; it will be a large structure on very small lot; construction work will require presence on their property because of very close property lines (2 ft.); property is on shared septic and well and concern about where new ones would go. Mr. Ingersoll said the septic is located between the Lohr property and the Fenstermacher’s. Mr. Ingersoll said the number of bedrooms (2) will not be increased. Ms. Fenstermacher said some of the space being created is for storage. Mr. Ingersoll said they have been trying to get someone from the county DOH to come and test the septic, but their calls have not been returned to date. There was discussion of where the new well would be located and proximity of well to septic. Mr. Levesque read into the record Zoning Sec. 904 C. Area Variances; and questions to consider in the granting of the area variance were answered as follows: a) yes b) no c) yes d) not sure e) yes. Mr. Ingersoll said they had been discussing an enhanced septic system with a contractor but with talk of extension of sewer lines around the lake they were not sure which way they would go. Mr. Levesque asked if anyone wished to speak regarding the application.
Mr. Levesque motioned to grant an Area Variance to Tricia Fenstermacher to build a 2 story addition onto an existing home closer to setbacks than allowed in the R-1 District and located at 3312 Highland Dr., Specifically Section 349.16-1-34 as stated in the application and in the minutes with the following conditions:
• Inadequacies and mistakes in drawings be corrected
• Approval received from county DOH on septic/sewer be received by C.E.O.
Mr. Thomas seconded. A roll call vote was taken and the motion was declined unanimously.
The hearing was adjourned at 9:00 PM.
Nancy Thomas
Town Clerk
