Owners of pre-existing lots smaller than the minimum area under current zoning will no longer need variances from the Riverhead Zoning Board of Appeals for many building additions and reconstructions.
The town board on Wednesday adopted a small-lot ordinance to relieve owners of the expense, effort and time of obtaining variances for side yard, rear yard and area variances as long as certain conditions are met:
- The use of the structure must be a conforming use under current zoning.
- The lot in question must be held in single and separate ownership, as certified in an abstract of title.
- The total dimension of both side yards is at least 4/10 of the lot width and no side yard will be less than 4/10 of the total dimensions of both side yards, or less than 10 feet, for a principal building.
- The total rear yard dimension for a principal building is at least 3/10 of the lot depth and at least 30 feet.
- The maximum impervious surface of a lot smaller than one acre is 20% — 15% for a lot up to two acres.
Under the new ordinance, a legally existing substandard lot will not be automatically merged with an adjoining lot if it comes into the same record ownership as a result of the death of a previous record owner.
The ordinance provides important relief for owners of properties that pre-exist current zoning and don’t meet the minimum size or setbacks of the current code. Prior to this, in order to add onto a structure under those circumstances, an owner would have to apply for a building permit, get a denial letter and then appeal the denial to the ZBA, requesting a variance. An appeal to the ZBA for a variance can be quite costly and time-consuming, as it usually requires the preparation of a new survey and often requires the assistance of an attorney.
The need for a small-lot ordinance came up during stakeholder meetings held by the town’s planning consultants working on the comprehensive plan update. The town board held a public hearing on the proposed ordinance on May 3.
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