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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZBA 1990-04-19 Minutes . MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT OF THE CITY OF NORTH RICHLAND HILLS, TEXAS APRIL 19, 1990 - 7:30 P. M. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by the Chairman, Tom Duer, at 7:32 P.M. ROLL CALL PRESENT: Chairman Secretary Members Dir. Community Dev. Chief Bldg. Official Code Enforcement Asst. Dir. PW P & Z Coordinator Tom Duer Robert Skinner Bill Cypert Ron Hubbard Danny Taylor Bob Williams Ken Miller John Johnston Wanda Calvert ABSENT: Jeff Bunting Jim Kemp Richard Lawson . CONSIDERATION OF THE MINUTES OF MARCH 15, 1990 Mr. Skinner made the motion to approve the minutes as written. This motion was seconded by Mr. Hubbard and the motion carried 3-0 with Chairman Duer abstaining since he was not present at the meeting. 1 . BA 90-04 Request of Marvin D. Smith to vary from the Zoning Ordinance #1080, Section 30.6.4 on Lot 29, Block 11, Foster Village Addition, to allow a sign in Residential zoning. This property is located at 6700 Inwood Drive. Chairman Duer opened the Public Hearing and called for those wishing to speak in favor of this request to please come forward. . Marvin Smith came forward. He showed pictures of other model homes in the area which have signs posted. He then showed pictures of his sign. Mr. Smith stated that at the time he erected the sign, he did not know it was in violation. Page 2 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . Mr. Smith requested he be allowed to leave the sign for another 120 days, then he will be glad to take it down. He stated he had no complaints from the neighbors. He said before he built the home there, the neighbors were tired of the trash and garbage on the lot. Mr. Smith said he is using this house as a temporary model home. Chairman Duer asked if the house is for sale. Mr. Smith said it is. He said he had a contract on it a few weeks ago, but it fell through. He said if the house sells, the sign would come down. Mr. Skinner asked Mr. Smith if he is familiar with the sign ordinance. Mr. Smith said he is now. . Chairman Duer asked if this is his last lot in this subdivision for sale. Mr. Smith said it is. Mr. Skinner asked if there is building going on in that section. Mr. Smith stated there is building going on in that subdivision, but not in that section. Chairman Duer asked if this was his last lot. Mr. Smith said it was. He said, in the picture, where Alamo is building is in Foster Village and the other picture is Windsor Park. Mr. Skinner asked if there was building going on in these subdivisions. . Mr. Smith stated there was. He said the reason he brought the pictures, he wanted to show he has a much neater sign. Page 3 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . Mr. Smith said Alamo Homes had banners up, but Mr. Miller made them take them down. Chairman Duer stated the city passed an ordinance where Real Estate sign could not be put out except on week ends. He asked what other signs they are allowed to have when they open up a subdivision. Mr. Miller stated they can have one on a particular lot they have for sale and for that builder to sell his homes. He said you can also have the 3' by 5' Real Estate For Sale Signs from Friday noon to Monday noon. Mr. Miller stated that pennants are not allowed. He said the Westchester sign in the picture is a development sign on Westchester property advertising their homes. . Mr. Skinner asked if they were still building in that subdivision. Mr. Miller stated they were. Chairman Duer asked, as for as this sign in question, since there is a house built on this lot, it is not conforming. Mr. Miller stated that is correct. He said there is a difference between a "For Sale" sign and a "development" sign. He said this is a "For Sale" sign. Mr. Skinner asked Mr. Miller to explain about the one for Alamo Homes in the picture. He asked if there was building going on there. . Mr. Miller said there is building going on there, however, the sign on the roof has been removed and the house has been converted back and has sold. Page 4 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . Mr. Smith said he had stated he had no complaints, but he did have one. He said Alamo Homes did complain about his sign. Mr. Hubbard asked how long the sign had been up. Mr. Smith said it had been up since November. Mr. Hubbard asked if the house was already built. Mr. Smith said it was. Mr. Hubbard asked where his closest construction going on. . Mr. Smith said on Douglas Lane, about 1/2 mile away. He said he builds all over. He said they may build in one spot two months and be gone. Mr. Smith said he is building now in Western Oaks, building off Chapman next to those Westchester Homes, building on Douglas Lane and in Century Oaks. Mr. Hubbard asked Mr. Smith if he has an information center at all these areas. Mr. Smith said he does not, he just has this one. He said they built this one to use as a model because of the traffic generated on Rufe Snow, but it has not worked out like they thought it would. Mr. Smith asked for 120 days and he would take the sign down. Chairman Duer called for anyone else wishing to speak in favor of this request to please corne forward. . There being no one, the Chairman called for those wishing to speak in opposition to this request to please come forward. Page 5 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . . Tom Colgrove, 6701 Fairmeadows, came forward. He said he also owns the house next door to the property in question, 6704 Inwood. He said he recently moved here from southern California where he spent 22 years as a Real Estate Broker. He said he had experiences with sign ordinances and saw things happen. Mr. Colgrove said his feelings are strong, if it is a residential area, it should not be used as a commercial area. He said he owns several rentals through out North Richland Hills. Mr. Colgrove said the house he owns at 6704 Inwood would be ideal for a real estate information center office, but said he thinks this would be wrong. He said this is a single house in a residential area and does not need to be used as an office. Mr. Colgrove said if this sign is allowed, others will follow. He said he feels very strong that if an ordinance is on the books, it should be inforced. Chairman Duer called for anyone else wishing to speak to please corne forward. There being no one, the Chairman closed the Public Hearing. Chairman Duer stated we received a letter from a neighbor who is is opposition to the sign. Chairman Duer stated that it takes 4 affirmative votes to approve a request and there are 4 members present. BA 90-04 DENIED Mr. Skinner made the motion to deny BA 90-04 and give Mr. Smith 10 days to move the sign. This motion was seconded by Mr. Hubbard and the motion for denial carried 4-0. . Mr. Smith asked if he could put up a yard sign. Page 6 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . Mr. Miller stated he could put up one advertising the house for sale. 2. BA 90-05 Request of Ray F. & Maxine Ramsey to vary from Ordinance #1471, Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance, on Lot 19, Block 8, Hillview Addition, to be allowed to build a garage and art studio on an existing slab that is in the flood plain. This property is located at 4306 Steven. Chairman Duer opened the Public Hearing and called for those wishing to speak in favor of this request to please come forward. Ray Ramsey came forward. He asked if the Board had read the information he had submitted with his application. The Board stated they had. . Mr. Ramsey stated he applied for a building permit, but was denied. He said he wants to go ahead and build the building that was approved by the city a few years ago. Mr. Ramsey said the foundation was poured, but he could not construct the building at that time. He said he now would like to go ahead and finish the building on the existing foundation. Mr. Ramsey said, after talking with the people here, there is a possibility that the 100 year rise might rise to the edge of that slab and not up into the building itself. He said he does not think erecting a building on top of the existing slab would cause a problem as for as flooding. Mr. Ramsey said if it did rise above the slab, he and his wife would be the only ones to suffer the damage. . Mr. Ramsey stated the building he wishes to build would be 75% brick and compatible to the house. He said it would up grade the neighborhood. Page 7 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . Chairman Duer asked if the slab was poured in 1983 and how much money was invested in the slab. Mr. Ramsey said he had steel and the plumbing, water and sewer, put in. He said it would be a guess, but approximately $3,500 to $4,000. Chairman Duer asked if Mr. Ramsey did it himself or contracted it out. Mr. Ramsey said a contractor built a room onto the house and poured the slab. Chairman Duer asked if the city has a record of the permit in 1983. Mr. Williams said they did not check, they did not go into the old records. . Chairman Duer said he just wanted to know if there had been a city employee look at it and approve it. Mr. Ramsey said he has a copy of what was placed on the property at that time. He showed it to the Board. Chairman Duer said it has an inspector by the name of Brown or Browning. Ms. Calvert said that would have been inspector Del Browning. Mr. Skinner asked if the slab had gotten wet since 1983. . Mr. Ramsey said not by rlslng water. He said in the 34 years they had lived there, the creek had been dug out and a concrete water way built, and they have never seen water to the top of the water way. He said down by the school, he has seen it get in some back yards, but not here, never in his back yard or garden. 1 Page 8 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . Chairman Duer asked about the flood of 1981. Mr. Ramsey said none at that time, either. Sandy Sharp, 4218 Steven, came forward. She said she had lived there since 1968 and they are neighbors to the north. She said the Ramseys are an asset to the neighborhood the way they take care of their property. Ms. Sharp said they bought these houses with large yards to raise their families and now they have lots of room. She said the lots go down hill to the creek. . Lynn Morgan, 4312 Steven, came forward. He said he is Ramsey's neighbor on the north side. He said he had lived there since 1980 and during the 1981 flood, water did not come in the yard at all. Mr. Morgan said he has seen the way Mr. Ramsey keeps his house and yard and does not think he would put anything up that would not contribute to the neighborhood. . Warren Batte, 4212 Steven, came forward. He said he lives two houses down from Mr. Ramsey. He said he had lived there for 25 years. Mr. Batte said that during that time he has had a little encroachment of water from that ditch two times, once in 1981 and again last spring. He said his yard slopes and is terraced and it got up about 10 feet into the yard and about 6 inches deep. Mr. Batte said to his knowledge, there was no water at all in Mr. Ramsey's back yard. He said he sees no reason why he should not be allowed to go ahead and finish, especially when he had a city permit and has invested $3,000 to $4,000 into it. 1 Page 9 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . Chairman Duer called for anyone wishing to speak in opposition to this request to please come forward. There being no one wishing to speak, the Chairman closed the Public Hearing. Chairman Duer asked if there was any correspondence. Mrs. Calvert stated there was none. . Mr. Hubbard stated he would like a little more clarification in our pre-meeting dealing with Fema. He said this is not a new development, it is not like there would be hundreds of new structures that might block the water corning through. He said he is very positive on granting the variance. He said he does not understand how it would affect our city in regards to Fema. Mr. Hubbard asked what would be the repercussions to us as a city if this was granted. Chairman Duer said he learned a lot in the pre-meeting regarding floodways, insurance, etc. He said his concern would be if your structure washed down the creek, you would have lost your house, but if the structure does wash away, it does change the floodway drastically. Chairman Duer said the houses here were built before we had all this information and the ordinance was adopted in 1987. Ms. Ramsey came forward. She said since the permit was granted and approved in 1983 and the slab was approved, she doesn't understand why there is discussion about it. Mr. Taylor asked if they got a permit for the building or just for the slab. . 1 Page 10 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . Ms. Ramsey said it was for the foundation of the room and the foundation for the garage. She said Robert Kelly was the builder and he got the permit to do the whole thing. She said all they were going to do was renew the permit; why is there any discussion. Mr. Taylor said the permit is expired; it expires after a year. Mr. Taylor said ordinances and requirements change over the years. Ms. Ramsey said they already have the approved foundation. . Mr. Skinner said the permit expired after one year with no building going on. He said since 7 years have passed, a lot of concrete has been built around that area. He said, to protect you, the city takes out insurance and this ordinance was adopted in 1987 so you could have this insurance. Mr. Hubbard said he thinks there would be no problem with adding one small structure. Mr. Skinner said we do not know what is going to happen in the future. Chairman Duer said this one structure is not going to change the flood plan for the whole city, but after the fact, we realize the structure is in the flood plain, if its already built, leave it there, but if it is not built and we build it knowing the facts, we are liable for any damage or problems that might arise. . Mr. Hubbard said if it is only going to affect these people, why not let them build it. 1 Page 11 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . Mr. Taylor said the ordinance we passed was in compliance with Fema. He said that Fema said if the city will pass a Flood Plain Management Ordinance, they will provide flood insurance for the city. Mr. Hubbard said this is only one small structure. Chairman Duer said if this one structure is built and it does move the structure off the foundation and it goes down the drain and causes a blockage, that changes the floodway. He said it would be much higher and could cause it to flood houses not in the flood plain. . Mr. Taylor said you remember when that church was built. He said we received an investigation complaint from Fema and if we had not been right, citizens in a flood area could have lost their insurance on that one deal. Mr. Hubbard asked if we had this flood insurance in 1981. Mr. Taylor said Fema was not that active at that time; it is relatively new. He said he thinks the flood of 1981 woke up a lot of people. Mr. Cypert said he had flood insurance in 1981. He said he lives in Diamond Loch Addition. Mr. Hubbard said the whole scenario has changed since 1983, with Fema and the ordinance in 1987. . Mr. Cypert said he understands the situation of these people. He asked if it would be possible to contact Fema and get input from them as to what their feelings are on this matter. . . . Page 12 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 John Johnston came forward. He said he has a point of clarification: The 100 year storm is not a storm that occurs every 100 years, it is a 1% chance that a storm of that magnitude will happen in each calendar year. Mr. Taylor said another thing, ten years down the road these people may not own the property and new owners might come to us and say why did you let them build in the floodway. Mr. Skinner read from the ordinance regarding the responsibility of the ZBA. He said the city has a Flood Plain Administrator, which is the Director of Public Works, Greg Dickens. Mr. Skinner said if we pass this, then the Flood Plain Administrator will have to pass on what we have said in a report to Fema. Chairman Duer asked if that is prior to issuing a building permit. Mr. Skinner said it does not say anything about that, but after the Flood Plain Administrator reports to Fema, then Fema must come back and perform it's own investigation. ~ Chairman Duer said if this is passed, it still would have to be approved by Fema before being built on. ~ Mr. Skinner said it has to be approved by Fema and if it is in the floodway, he will also have to have an engineering study. Mr. Taylor said he doesn't deal with the ordinance. He said Greg Dickens and his engineers review each request for a permit, and this is where this one was stopped. ~ Page 13 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . Chairman Duer said he just wonders if this ordinance has any teeth in it. He said that church was built and we never heard from Fema until after it was built. Mr. Taylor said it was a neighbor who complained to Fema. . Mr. Cypert said if it is less than 5 acres, it is handled by the local Flood Administrator. Mr. Cypert said he sees the hardship the people have, he sees the hardship the city has, and he sees the hardship we, as a Board, has in making a decision. He said his suggestion would be to have Greg make a phone call to Fema and try to see if they have any input and what the repercussions would be to the city if we pass this. He asked they stay this decision for 30 days to see if we can come to a decision. Mr. Cypert said if we deny these people, then they would have to go to District Court. Chairman Duer said the 4 of us on this Board are just citizens, not engineers. He said he would like to get Greg Dicken's professional opinion on this. Chairman Duer said several months ago, this Board made a decision on that church that come before them and the only way they could build was to have about a 6 foot tall foundation. He said that was the best way we saw to not have it in the flood plain. He said what concerns him is, Fema got a complaint on that church and it could have affected the entire City of North Richland Hills insurance rates. There was a lot more discussion between the Board and audience. . Page 14 Z B A Minutes April 19, 1990 . . BA 90-05 TABLED ADJOURNMENT . of Adjustment ~ Mr. Skinner made a motion to table BA 90-05 for 60 days so that Public Works Director can speak with these people to understand further the problem that occurred here and come back in 60 days and this Board will be forced to make a decision. This motion died for lack of a second. Chairman Duer made the motion that city staff investigate the possibility of us getting some reaction from Fema on this issue as to whether the granting of this would potentially jeopardize the insurance situation for flood insurance and table this request for 30 days. Chairman Duer asked Mrs. Calvert if she got the motion down. Mrs. Calvert stated she would copy it from the tape. Chairman Duer made the motion again. Chairman Duer made the motion to employ city staff to get some recommendation from Fema of the after affects if this building was built, on the possibility of jeopardizing the flood insurance of North Richland Hills, and this item be tabled for 30 days or on hearing from city staff about Fema. This motion was seconded by Mr. Cypert and the motion to table carried 4-0. The meeting adjourned at 8:45 P.M. ß~~ Chairman Zoning Board of Adjustment