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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-13-2023 FINAL Staff Report 403 N 5thSTAFF REPORT HISTORIC & ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMMISSION COA APPLICATION INFORMATION ADDRESS 403 N. 5th Street CASE NO. COA2023-001 OWNER Steve Shrewsberry APPLICANT Steve Shrewsberry REQUEST Certificate of Appropriateness GENERAL SITE INFORMATION CURRENT ZONING H-2 CURRENT LAND USE Residential PUBLIC UTILITIES Power, gas, water PUBLIC SERVICES Storm sewer, Paducah Fire, Paducah Police SURROUNDING AREA INFORMATION SURROUNDING ZONING SURROUNDING LAND USE NORTH H-2 Residential SOUTH H-2 Residential EAST H-2 Residential WEST H-2 Residential Vicinity Map STAFF REPORT (continued) page 2 of 8 Front from 5th Street Corner from Madison and 5th Street STAFF REPORT (continued) page 3 of 8 BACKGROUND INFORMATION 403 N. 5th is located in the H-2 Historic Neighborhood Zone. Most notably regarding this case this property sits on a corner lot. PROJECT OVERVIEW The Applicant requests a Certificate of Appropriateness to place new fencing along the front, sides, and rear of the property. Sections of existing 6’ wooden fencing towards the rear of the property will be removed. The proposed fencing will consist of two different materials used in separate locations. For the fencing along the font and sides of the property the material will be aluminum and will use a universal spear top style. The height will be 4’. Examples: STAFF REPORT (continued) page 4 of 8 The new wooden fencing will match the pattern and style of the existing wooden fencing that is to be removed. It will also remain its original height of 6’. This new fencing will be placed further into the yard of the property. Existing fencing is shown below. Also attached is a layout provided by the Applicant that shows locations of the new proposed fencing in relation to the house and property line. The new aluminum fence is shown in red, the new wood in blue, and the existing but to be removed wood in green. STAFF REPORT (continued) page 5 of 8 STAFF REPORT (continued) page 6 of 8 STAFF ANALYSIS The H-2 Design Standards allow for the use the following fence materials: wood, wrought iron, tubular steel, cast aluminum, or brick. Chain link, barbed wire, and vinyl materials are not allowed. From this the proposed use of aluminum and wood for the new fencing material is permitted. The height requirements for fences in the H-2 Zone are as follows: Fence Height The heights of the approved fences are subject to the Paducah Code of Ordinances regulated heights (Section 126-83). On corner lots, the structure will be considered to have two front yards, with the front yard ending at the rear corner of the structure. At the time of adoption of this policy, those heights are as follows: Front yard - 4 feet Side yard - 6 feet Rear yard - 8 feet Furthermore, these yards are defined as: “The front yard is defined as the front part of the yard from the front corners of the structure to the front property line. The sides of the structure define the side yard. The rear yard is from the rear corners of the structure to the rear property line. On corner lots, the structure has two front yards, with the front yard ending at the rear corner of the structure.” In this case the property’s location on a corner lot changes the definition and thereby height requirements of its side yard along Madison Street to that of a front yard. This requires that the proposed fencing must follow the 4’ height requirement. As proposed the aluminum fencing meets and does not exceed this 4’ requirement. The 6’ requirement for the side yard is met for the wooden fence located between 403 N. 5th and its neighboring house. As proposed the new fencing at 403 N. 5th Street meets the requirements for both material and height as set in the H-2 Design Standards. However, there remains one possible challenge for its placement near the corner of 5th and Madison in regard to traffic visibility and appropriate sight triangles as defined in the Zoning Ordinance. This is again due to the property’s location on a corner lot and four-way intersection. Homes at the corners of these intersections must follow these regulations as defined in the following section of the Zoning Ordinance. STAFF REPORT (continued) page 7 of 8 Sec. 126-65. - Traffic visibility at intersections. (a) There shall be provided a triangular space at the street corner of a corner lot, free from any kind of obstruction to vision between the heights of two and one-half (2½) and twelve (12) feet above established grade, determined by a diagonal line connecting two (2) points measured fifteen (15) feet equidistant from the street right-of-way corner along each property line. (Code 1968, app. A, §§ 40.10, 40.101, 40.102; Code 1996, § 156.039; Code 1997, § 126- 65; Ord. No. 76-10-1339, 10-26-1976) Due to this requirement the proposed location of the fence along the corners of 5th and Madison must be located 15’ away from the curbs within this sight triangle. This can be measured starting from the edge of the curb, to the grass, to the sidewalk, and into the property line. This requirement will be enforced by the City of Paducah Fire Prevention Department and if not followed by the applicant a fence permit will not be issued. If this adherence is met then Staff would recommend approval for this project. In summary Staff recommends approval for the following reasons: appropriate use of building material, appropriate height for corner lots, and a revised placement of the fence due to requirements from the sight triangle STAFF REPORT (continued) page 8 of 8 RECOMMENDED MOTIONS Based on the above, staff recommends approval of the request and recommends the following motion: I move that this Commission Approve the Certificate of Appropriateness request of Steve Shrewsberry for new fencing at 403 N. 5th Street. I further move that the approval be based on the following findings of fact • The proposed fencing is in conformity and complies with the H-2 Design Standards regarding use of material and fence height. • The proposed fence will comply with the required 15’ setback from the curb along the corner of 5th and Madison as to not violate the sight line requirements.