Tabling Growth

David Rousu, who purchased a lot at 804 W Bridge Avenue earlier this year, will have to wait to find out whether or not he can build a house on the property.

Despite being surrounded by residential homes, the lot is located in retail business as are the other lots surrounding it. While the Saratoga Planning Commission recommended approval of a zone change for Rousu’s lot—with Mayor Chuck Davis providing the tie-breaking vote—the Saratoga Town Council voted to table the zone change at their September 17 meeting. Davis was not in attendance.

The apparent problem for the council to grant approval centered around whether the governing body should allow further spot zoning, grant a variance, or completely rezone a block of houses.

According to Section 18.72 of the Saratoga Municipal Code, “The purpose of any variance shall be to modify the strict application of the requirements of this title where it can be shown that, by reason of exceptional topography or other extraordinary or exceptional circumstances, literal enforcement of the terms of this title will result in an unnecessary hardship to the extent that the property might be prohibited from being used in a manner similar to other property in the same district.”

While the planning commission recommended a zone change, Director of Public Works Emery Penner told the council he would not recommend a variance. Members of the council, however, were opposed to the zone change.

“We are pushing toward retail business on Bridge Street, and a house built in the retail section would be non-conforming,” said Councilmember Jerry Fluty.

“The surrounding lots to the one in question are all residential in nature,” Penner said. “There are several houses in the retail business block that must have been there before the current zoning map.”

Sue Jones spoke to this very issue during the August 13 meeting of the Saratoga Planning Commission.

“Bridge Street’s been an absolute disaster for [decades]. It is spot zone central,” Jones said in August. “When [the Town] started to zone in the early 1970s I think they got a little confused and were down in the lower end of Bridge Street which truly was retail business, and they had this vision of going up the hill. For years, when I sat on the town council, we spot zoned.”

Councilmember Kathy Beck, during the council meeting, said the governing body did not want to further a precedent of spot zoning “because there are probably other anomalies throughout the town.”

With the council seemingly unsure on how to proceed, local resident and business owner Randy Raymer offered some insight on the issue.

“Instead of spot zoning or granting a variance [for this particular instance] maybe rezone the entire block where the residences lie to residential,” said Raymer.

The council voted unanimously to “table the discussion on the zone change at 8th and Bridge Street.” The discussion will likely continue at the next council meeting.

The next meeting of the Saratoga Town Council will be at 6 p.m. on October 1 at Saratoga Town Hall.