Dering Harbor Zoning Board rules on Rose application

It took over two hours of discussion on Saturday, October 17 for members of the Dering Harbor Zoning Board of Appeals to come to an agreement on Susannah and Brandon Rose’s application for exemptions to the zoning code.

The couple is looking to enlarge their home by enclosing their porch, which will extend the structure and require a variance for rear- and side-yard setbacks.

There were only two questions from the audience of five in the public hearing portion of the ZBA’s meeting: What factors were cited by the applicants for the exemptions and what were the neighbors’ responses.

Chair John Colby referred to five provisions of the zoning code that the applicants would need to meet  in their application; with regard to the latter question, he replied that two neighbors were in favor of the plans, one was in favor but with provisions and two had not responded.

Mr. Colby and ZBA members (Kirk Ressler, Marian Brownlie and Bridg Hunt) discussed at length the impact of relocating the French doors of the enclosed porch, the addition of a pergola, and whether the steps, not shown in the construction drawings but part of the landscape design, were defined as a “structure” and therefore were part of the ZBA’s mandate.

In conclusion, the ZBA agreed to grant a rear-yard setback but denied the side-year setback application, which included the pergola and doors. The board recommended that the couple submit a revised set of construction plans to the building inspector for doors within the footprint of the existing structure.

As a technicality and matter of procedure, the ZBA will act on two other provisions of the zoning code as they relate to altering the structure at a meeting on Saturday, October 31 at 10 a.m.

In one more item of business, the ZBA unanimously approved a resolution of Kirk Ressler’s 2002 petition regarding the use of a pre-existing, non-conforming structure. The long-standing problem was resolved between Mr. Colby and Mr. Ressler and vetted by attorneys for Mr. Ressler and the village.