Town of Otsego Zoning Board of Appeals

Minutes - February 20, 2007

REGULAR MEETING

The monthly Town of Otsego Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) meeting was held on this date (the meeting scheduled for January was postponed at the request of the Chairman). Chairman Greg Crowell called the meeting to order at 7:35 PM. Roll call was taken by Secretary Bill Deane. Board members present were Crowell, Sam Hoskins, and Anita Weber. Zoning Enforcement Officer Mike Miller was also present. Board members Tony Scalici (Vice-Chairman) and Bill Michaels were absent. The attendees discussed Scalici's status. His term ended on December 31, 2006, and he has not been formally reappointed by the Town Board, nor has a replacement been named.

Hoskins moved to approve the minutes of December 19, 2005 as mailed, and Crowell seconded the motion. Weber pointed out that she had not been a ZBA member at that time, nor had she seen the minutes, so she was not prepared to vote. With three votes necessary to pass any vote, the motion failed, and the matter was postponed until the next meeting.

Chairman Crowell distributed copies of correspondence accumulated since the last meeting:

a.. Copies of the July/August 2006, September/October 2006, November/December 2006, and January/February 2007 Talk of the Towns & Topics.
b.. Copies of the Fall, 2006 Planning News.
c.. Applications for the Rural Issues Community Leadership Conference, to be held in Cooperstown on April 5, 2007.
d.. Updated copies of the Land Use Law.
Also in correspondence was a letter sent by the ZBA to Dorothy Rudkin, neighbor of the Village of Cooperstown, inviting her to the December 19, 2006 public hearing on the Village's ZBA application. The letter (filed) was returned to sender, "unable to forward."

The Board moved on to applications.

06.10 - Gerry Welch - Area variance, erection of 75-foot observation tower - Wedderspoon Hollow Road (#54.00-2-1.02)

Applicant Gerry Welch wants to build a 75-foot-tall observation tower for bird-watching on his vacant property in the RA-1 District. He needs an area variance because the height limit specified by the Land Use Law is 40 feet. The proposed tower will have a dwelling on the top, including kitchen facilities and a Porta-John. It will not have running water or electricity. Welch plans to build a roadway to the structure.

The Board examined documents submitted by Welch, including the application, maps and photos of the property, and pictures of the proposed tower. Welch also submitted a newspaper article, showing that such a structure had once existed near his property. Anita Weber noted that the former structure was for public use, whereas the proposed tower is for private use.

Zoning Enforcement Officer Miller noted that the structure would require a land use permit and a County building permit, besides the area variance, and that there would be codes issues to consider. Site plan review would not be required unless the project were deemed a special permitted use, or the slope of the property were an issue.

Welch said he would not be available for the March meeting date, and asked that the public hearing be delayed until April.

Sam Hoskins moved to deem the application complete and schedule a public hearing for April 17. Weber seconded the motion and it was approved, 3-0.

07.01 - Norm Johannesen - Use variance, conversion of vacant building into four-unit short-term rental - 4987 State Highway 28 (#146.00-2-18.00)

Applicant Norm Johannesen owns a vacant, historic (c. 1816) mill building in the GB-2 District. He wants to use it for four units of short-term rental space. If the building were restructured to accommodate nine or more units, it would be considered a hotel, which is permissible in the district; however, with only four units, it does not qualify as a permitted use. Johannesen thus seeks a use variance.

Board members examined the submitted documents, including the application, map and drawing of the property, and photo of the building. Chairman Crowell
pointed out that, per Section 9.03, #3 on page 37 of the Land Use Law, the applicant must show "unnecessary hardship" to qualify for a use variance. The Board discussed use
variances, and the intent of the law permitting hotels in the district.

Welch spoke at length about preserving the historic character of the building, and the inanity of the law permitting a hotel with nine units but not four.
After discussion, the Board asked him to submit a more complete application at the March 20 meeting, including detailed description and documentation of what he wants to do
and why it presents an unnecessary hardship.

Bill Deane noted that Welch would have to pay a $25 application fee. Deane also questioned that only three neighbors within 200 feet of the property lines
were listed, but Welch affirmed that those were the only neighbors.

OTHER BUSINESS

Bill Deane distributed copies of a sample actual ZBA resolution, to be used as a guide for members making resolutions on future applications.

Chairman Crowell said that the decision on a Vice-Chairman for 2007 should be tabled until Tony Scalici's status was resolved and the Board was at full strength.

Zoning Enforcement Officer Miller asked for the Board's help in interpreting Section 2.11 (lot size averaging on a single parcel) on page 14 of the Land Use Law. Miller asked if he could simply issue a land use permit if a person had 6+ acres and wanted to build a second dwelling on the property. The attendees discussed this at length, including the situation of the John Tedesco application which came before the ZBA on June 21, 2005. The consensus was that this was really a Planning Board issue.

With no further business, at 9:31 Hoskins moved to adjourn the meeting. Crowell seconded the motion and it was approved, 3-0.

Respectfully submitted,

Bill Deane, Secretary