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Quick action likely on Heights house variances

JULIE LANE PHOTO Property owner James Welch needs five variances from the Zoning Board of Appeals to make changes to his house at 2 Sylvan Place in Shelter Island Heights.
JULIE LANE PHOTO
Property owner James Welch needs five variances from the Zoning Board of Appeals to make changes to his house at 2 Sylvan Place in Shelter Island Heights.

Heights resident James Welch had an easy time with the Zoning Board of Appeals Wednesday night as an application for five variances drew few questions and a likely endorsement in March.
Sam Case of Sherman Engineering made the case for the project, backed up by a letter from the Heights Property Owners Corporation expressing no objections to the plans.

The application, in the words of ZBA member Lynne Colligan, is “straight forward.” Her colleagues agreed.

The variances are needed to move air conditioners to another area on the property; build a new porch deck that needs front and side yard variances and lot coverage variances.

The air conditioning units, already installed on the property drew the only questions, with Mr. Welch explaining they are the same units already on the property.

When asked by a neighbor standing in his yard about the noise level, Mr. Welch pointed out that they were currently running and were so quiet that the neighbor had no concerns.

The lot that is 11,546 square feet would allow for 28.86 percent coverage, but Mr. Welch would need to be allowed to extend that lot coverage to between 29.37 percent and 30.45 percent.

The project also needs a special permit because properties in the heights are generally already nonconforming to code as Mr. Welch’s property is. The permit is necessary to make any further changes to a nonconforming structure.

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