Oskaloosa Board of Adjustment Meeting- 10-25-11
Chairman Brian Johnson
Oskaloosa, Iowa- The Oskaloosa Board of Adjustment met Tuesday evening in the City Council Chambers with Chairman Brian Johnson presiding. The first item presented was a request from Ken Seemann to decrease rear yard setback requirements to build a townhouse at 304 North I street. Seemann was requesting his setback to be at 9 feet. Zoning regulations for that area require a minimum setback of 25 feet. “Well we’re trying to keep the lot lines consistent and our objective is to go on and get a subdivision so that ultimately we can divide that off and sell them as separate properties,” Seemann said when asked why he wanted the variance. The board voted 5-0 to approve the Variance as requested.
The next item on the agenda was a request the street side yard setback to build a porch at 1101 1st Ave West. The homeowner was requesting a variance to the street side yard setback from 15 feet to 8.5 feet for her porch. The majority of the discussion of the variance was centered around chickens. Information in the agenda packed indicated that the homeowner was raising chickens at her home. Building Inspector Dan Bolt indicated that that would be against zoning. “At the scale we’re talking about here, I think the only place that you could find that you could raise chickens is in the agricultural zoning,” Bolt said. Bolt indicated that a large section of a back yard had been turned into chicken coop. Bolt said that he was received complaints from homeowners about odor and noise from the chickens.
“Which do you want more? Chickens or a porch,” Board member Hansen asked. Hansen had previously noted that staff was recommending the variance be approved subject to the homeowner getting rid of her chickens. The homeowner indicated that family medical problems would make it difficult to get rid of the chickens immediately. She requested to be given 30 days. The board voted 5-0 to approve the variance subject to the homeowner getting rid of her chickens within 30 days. The board also noted that if more medical problems made 30 days impossible, the board would be open to an extension.
The next item was a request from Dale Bower for a variance to increase roof height for an accessory building. Current zoning requires a maximum of a 12 foot height on an accessory building. Bower was requesting a variance to 15 feet. After little discussion, the board voted 5-0 to approve the variance request.
The final item on the agenda was a request from Kevin Johnson for a variance to increase roof height for an accessory building. Current zoning in that district also requires a 12 foot maximum height for an accessory building. Johnson was requesting a variance to 16 feet. The board voted 5-0 to approve the variance request.
