Government

Hashing out issues in the zoning code

Peter Ruig (right) explains that work on any Heights property can send a homeowner to the Zoning Board. Earlier in the meeting, fellow board member William Johnston (left) urged the board to adopt a pyramid law to limit house proportions.


Should Island houses have third stories? Is the Zoning Board or Town Board better suited to review wetlands permits? Would a pyramid law ensure that houses are built in proportion to their lots and neighborhoods?


Those were some of the questions volleyed between Town Board and Zoning Board members during an informal meeting of the two bodies at the December 8 Town Board work session.


One topic was not publicly discussed — whether the Zoning Board would have approval authority over plans to rebuild the only house on the First Causeway to Little Ram Island.


After the work session recessed, the two boards met in executive session to discuss property negotiations and personnel matters relating to specific cases involving the two boards. No specific projects were named, but the Town Board recently discussed the possibility of acquiring the Zagoreos property.


ZONING DISCUSSION


Town Supervisor Jim Dougherty began the discussion by questioning whether the Zoning Board is being overloaded with applicants seeking relief from building setbacks and other rules “when we should be amending the zoning code to put more clarification into the law.”


An initial focus on whether variances granted are resulting in properties becoming more nonconforming shifted to specific changes to the code that have widespread Zoning Board support. “Implementation of a pyramid law addresses these issues,” ZBA member Doug Matz said about the increase in nonconforming properties. A pyramid law would link house dimensions to the size of the property and distance between the house and adjoining properties. Currently, any house on the Island can be 35 feet from ground level to the highest point of a gabled roof whether it is set back 100 feet or 12 feet from an adjoining property. A pyramid law could dictate that at a distance of 20 feet from a neighboring property, a house could be limited to 20 feet high.


ZBA Chairperson Joann Piccozzi “begged” the board “to allow three stories.” Town code prohibits third stories but state building codes allow them if ceiling sprinkler systems are installed. The ZBA’s support for allowing three stories was unanimous. A combination of a pyramid law in conjunction with the 35-foot height limit would allow third stories with minimal impacts to neighbors, they indicated.


“The Fire Department has some thoughts on that,” Councilman Ed Brown said. 


“We’re not asking to increase heights of buildings,” Mr. Matz responded.


But more third floors will mean more people in them, Glenn Waddington commented, and even with sprinkler systems, “firemen will throw a ladder up to the third floor.”


Audience member Don Kornrumpf and Supervisor Dougherty said that allowing third floors would encourage increased development of houses.


“We’re not asking for bigger houses but better use of houses,” Ms. Piccozzi said.


When asked about recurring problems the Zoning Board faces, Mr. Matz said that houses needing relief from both Town Board wetlands restrictions and zoning setbacks create confusion. The Zoning Board should address both issues simultaneously, he said.


Wetlands permits and zoning appeals fall under different sections of town code and are “two different things,” Councilman Peter Reich said. Mr. Waddington said that when the wetlands code was developed, the Town Board members decided that authority for wetlands permits should reside with them because of their accountability as elected officials. In other East End towns, wetlands related issues are under the jurisdiction of town trustees; the Town Board essentially serves as both councilmen and trustees, Mr. Reich pointed out.


ZBA member Peter Ruig also addressed recurring problems. “Anyone who wants to do anything” with a Heights property “has to come before the Zoning Board.” Maybe some changes need to be made to avoid that, he said.


Building permits coordinator Mary Wilson summarized the problems with too much granting of relief from town code: “At some point, if you buy a property with limitations, you need to live within those limitations.” Not every property can accommodate a large home, a pool, a carriage house and more. “Sometimes you just need to buy bigger,” she said.


A suggestion that some form of architectural review might be needed to protect the Island’s character was met with statements from Mr. Waddington that “right now, the character of the Island is diversity,” and Ms. Lewis that it’s “difficult to legislate taste.” 


OTHER ISSUES


During the December 8 work session, the Town Board also discussed the following:


• An application for a special permit to enlarge a house to over 8,500 square feet. The O’Shea application was under review for completeness but Town Attorney Laury Dowd noted that this was not the first situation in which a house was built with an unfinished basement without exceeding the 8,500 square feet of living area threshold only to apply shortly after completion for the special permit to finish the remainder of the house. The finished basement will add 3,500 square feet to the 8,200-square-foot house on Proposed Road and will include a batting cage, sauna, 960-square-foot sitting room — “all the essentials,” Ms. Dowd said.


• A revised dock application for the Staebler property on Dickerson Drive. The board responded unfavorably to Mr. Staebler’s original dock plan, which did not meet length and setback requirements. Board members indicated support for a 40-foot dock with a stake-and-pulley mooring at the end so that the owner’s boat will have adequate depth at anchor. Mr. Brown said that the board’s plan should go to the Waterways Management Advisory Council for its input.


• Insurance options. After a presentation from the New York Municipal Insurance Reciprocal, the board decided not to increase the town’s liability umbrella from $10 million to $15 million.


• Challenging the state’s new open burning law. Some residents are suggesting that the town oppose the new law banning burning of leaves, Ms. Lewis said. An informal group led by Fire Department and Police Department chiefs will be reviewing the town’s compliance with the new requirements.


• “The end is in sight” on First Causeway road improvements, Mr. Dougherty said. Weather permitting, one lane will be paved by the end of the week, he added. Pavement was removed near the intersection with Ram Island Drive in order to build up the road bed and raise the level of the pavement by three feet.


• Concerns from Bert Waife. He asked why Mr. Reich complained to the Building Department about his floats near Island Boatyard. They reduce navigability, Mr. Reich responded.


• A suggestion that owners of homes damaged in a recent windstorm should be exempted from building permit fees.