License and Variance Board Meeting - A. MAX BACON CITY HALL - COUNCIL CHAMBERS — Minutes
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August 27, 2025 10:00 AM City of Smyrna License and Variance Board Meeting 2800 King Street SE Council Chambers Page 4 of 8 neighbor to the southwest in close proximity. Community Development believes the variance is the minimum variance needed to construct any usable outdoor space due to the existing patio already over the rear setback. At the time of this report, Community Development has not received any calls in opposition to the request. The applicant is requesting to deviate from the development standards established by the Logan’s Walk subdivision plat, which requires a rear setback of 15 feet. According to Section 1403 of the Zoning Ordinance, variances must be reviewed under the following standards: (1) Whether there are unique and special or extraordinary circumstances applying to the property; (2) Whether any alleged hardship is self-created by any person having an interest in the property; (3) Whether strict application of the relevant provisions of the code would deprive the applicant of reasonable use of the property; and (4) Whether the variance proposed is the minimum variance needed. After a review of the standards above, Community Development believes that the encroachment will not adversely affect surrounding residents; therefore, staff recommends approval of the requested variance with the following condition: 1. Approval of the variance is conditioned upon substantial compliance with the site plan and elevations submitted with the variance application. Jacob Barker, applicant, stated he understands and agrees to the condition into record. A public hearing was called, and no one came forward in favor of or in opposition to this item. Board Member Andrea Worthy made a motion to approve item V25-080; seconded by Board Member Bo Jones. The motion to approve carried with the following vote: Aye: 3 – Chairperson Garland, Board Member Jones, Board Member Worthy Nay: 0 – None Recuse: 0 – None D. V25-081 Public Hearing - Variance Request - V25-081 - Reduce the rear setback from 25 feet to 22 feet - Land Lot 330 - 572 Lakeview Terrace - Christopher Hembree Ward 7 Councilmember - Rickey N. Oglesby Jr. Caitlin Crowe, Land Services Development Coordinator, provided the following background: The subject parcel is a 0.17-acre lot located on the northern side of the Lakeview Terrace cul-de-sac. The subject parcel and all adjoining parcels to the south, east, and west are zoned RDA and are occupied by single-family detached homes within the Lakeview Terrace subdivision. The parcel to the north is in Unincorporated Cobb County and is occupied by the public park known as Thompson Park. The property has an existing concrete patio in the rear of home. Due to the heavily wooded rear of the property, grass is difficult to grow, causing the rear yard to be primarily taken up by dirt. The applicant is proposing to erect a 349 square foot deck around the patio to surround it on two sides to expand the usable outdoor space in the rear. Patios that are flush to the ground are not required to meet building setbacks. However, since the deck will be a foot off the ground, it is considered a building addition and must meet the