Board of Adjustment Agenda and Packet 2013 09 18

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August 23, 2013 To the members of the Planning Department and Board of Adjustment for the City of Louisville, CO: We live on a cul -de -sac in Pine Street Park, in a three -story house that backs onto Pine Street. The ground drops by one full level from the front - where we have a garage and an entry door on the main level - to the back, where we have an unfinished, walkout basement. Sliding doors on the back of the house are located at the basement level of the southwest corner, and at the main level of the southeast corner just off the kitchen. Our very modest, main -level deck is accessed through this main -level sliding door. This deck is as old as the house (> 20 years old), and it has deteriorated to the point of needing replacement. We would like to replace it with an improved version that can comfortably accommodate a grill and a modest dining table (the deck we have now is stocked only with a grill and a few stackable chairs). This would require an expansion of the deck's area, but we have come to learn that this would not be permissible without a zoning variance that allows us to exceed our legal lot coverage limit. Our neighborhood falls within Louisville's Residential Estate (RE) zoning district that restricts lot coverage to no more than 20% of total lot area and specifies a minimum allowable lot area of 12,000 sq. ft. Our feeling is that, since the size of our lot, at -4,600 sq. ft., is only 38% of the minimum specified by the RE code, it is therefore ill- fitted to this zoning district and a relaxation of our coverage limit should be granted. Responses to Zoning Variance Request Criteria 1. That there are unique physical circumstances or conditions such as irregularity, narrowness or shallowness of lot, or exceptional topographical or other physical conditions peculiar to the affected property; The most exceptional physical circumstance of our lot is its small size, -4,600 sq. ft., which is far less than the minimum 12,000 sq. ft. size mandated for RE properties. Indeed, it is far less even than the 7,000 sq. ft. minimum size mandated for Residential Low Density (RL) properties in Louisville. 2. That the unusual circumstances or conditions do not exist throughout the neighborhood or district in which the property is located; While our lot is well to the low side of the mean size in Pine Street Park, it is not extremely unique. The majority of properties in our neighborhood were originally developed to substantially exceed the 20% RE coverage limit. The City has recognized that many properties in Louisville's RE zoning district were originally developed more in accordance with the RL zoning code,