1067 Beach Avenue nonconforming porch expansion (Mandarin Emporium, Inc.)

Recommended

no committee or staff recommendation recorded; Principal Planner Jamieson presented with factual analysis of nonconforming status.

Debated

The 1927-built house at the corner of Eleventh Street and Beach Avenue sits on a 30-foot-wide nonconforming lot in a residential general multifamily zone, with the existing structure failing to meet the 15-foot total side yard setback requirement — neither side reaches 5 feet. An active code enforcement violation and stop work order were already on the property when the variance came to staff's attention via a DEP zoning confirmation letter request. The applicant's contractor, Rich Trendel of Petra Contracting, told the board the owners "just" thought they were enclosing under an existing porch and didn't realize full permitting requirements applied. Vice Chair Golombek, though typically opposed to setback reductions, ran the math aloud — a 30-foot lot with 15-foot setbacks leaves only a 15-foot house — and concluded they should "just get it right as far as meeting variances and things like that and let them move forward."

Decided

PASSED — approved ZVAR26-0006 to allow expansion of a nonconforming structure and continuation into required side yard setbacks.