SOUTH HERO DEVELOPMENT REVIEW BOARD MINUTES March 13, 2024
Members Present: Tim Maxham (Chair), Doug Patterson (Vice-Chair); Gareth Hunt; Mike Welch; Jim Brightwell; Tim Mullen (Alternate); Liza Kilcoyne.
Others Present: Brian and Rebecca Aitchison; Martha Taylor-Varney (ZA).
7:00PM – T. Maxham called the meeting to order.
Changes to the Agenda
There were none.
Public Input
There was none.
Request for Setback Waiver f or a Replacement Home at 15 Sunset Beach Rd. – Brian and Rebecca Aitchison (24-55-SB015)
The warning was read, and the Aitchison’s were sworn in. Brian Aitchison presented the application to the Board. He said that their objective was to become year-round residents of South Hero. The current home is not practical for year-round – there is rot, mold, no storage space. It cannot be renovated. The mechanicals are beneath the current structure. They need to replace the home.
The Aitchison’s are proposing a traditional cottage look. They reached out to the neighbors as part of the design planning. Pat Corbin was in support of the proposal. There was some concern from the Tippers (neighbors to the west) about the height, and the Applicants made some concessions there by reducing the roof pitch from 10/12 to 8/12, removing some windows from the west side, and reducing the width by 6” on the east and west sides. The current structure has an irregular roofline. The new house will increase the roof height from 20’ to 27’ with a center north/south ridgeline. The maximum height has been moved away from the west side to the center of the structure. The first-floor height is 8 feet. The second floor will have a kick wall. A bedroom there will have raised a raised ceiling extending into the third-floor space. The third-floor attic space is narrow with reduced space and headroom.
The lot is 50 feet wide but deep. The structure will conform to the road and the lake and will be barely visible from the road. The footprint of the home is 105 feet and is the lowest home location on the road. From this point on Sunset Beach Rd., the rest of the properties continue to increase in elevation. A new year-round wastewater system for a 3BR home was put in in 2007. The proposed replacement home will have 3 bedrooms.
- Taylor-Varney read 4 letters of support from Sunset Beach Rd. neighbors – James Clapp (SB051), Craig and Kelly Austin (SB057), Al Foice (SB079), and Scott and Kate Baldwin (SB085).
- Welch moved to enter the emails into the record; G. Hunt second. All in favor.
Questions from the Board
- Maxham confirmed that at 50 feet wide, the lot has no conforming space. He complimented the Applicants on the detail of the submittals, especially the comparisons on page 3.
- Patterson asked what the difference in height is from the original 8/12 roof and the proposed 8/12 slope? The height was reduced from 29’3” to 27”.
- Maxham closed the hearing at 7:31PM.
New Business
There was none.
Review of Minutes
- Hunt moved to accept the minutes of February 28, 2024; L. Kilcoyne second. All in favor.
Administrator’s Report
- The Board’s hearing schedule –
- March 27, 2024 – appeal hearing to building permit issued by the ZA for 41 Sunset Beach Rd.
- April 10, 2024 – setback waiver at KF049
variance request at KP109
- April 24, 2024 – deliberation only
- May 8, 2024 – setback waiver at PI013
- The zoning office will be closed April 24 through May 2.
Adjournment
7:44PM – D. Patterson moved to adjourn and move to deliberative; G. Hunt second. All in favor.
Respectfully submitted,
Martha Taylor-Varney, ZA.
Signed: ___________________________________________ Date: _________________________
For the Development Review Board
These minutes are unofficial until approved at the next regularly scheduled meeting. All motions were unanimous unless otherwise indicated.