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2) The property owner proposes to use the property in a reasonable manner not permitted by the <br />Zoning Ordinance. <br />There are no three story homes within the community that staff is aware of, however there <br />are many 2 '/ story homes. Noting this, staff is concerned about the effect community -wide <br />by permitting a third story. As such, staff is not convinced the proposed addition is <br />reasonable. There are other reasonable manners (a half story) in adding square footage to <br />the home that do not require a variance. <br />In reviewing whether the request is reasonable, it's worth acknowledging the overall square <br />footage is small at 236, with an additional 125 SF of deck space off the third floor. Also, the <br />applicant has designed roofpitches that allow the defined height of the structure to fit within <br />the 30' maximum allowed by Section 4-040. <br />3) The plight of the landowner is due to circumstances unique to the property and not created by <br />the landowner. <br />The request to add a third story for additional living space is driven by architectural <br />preference, which is a circumstance created by the landowner and not something unique to <br />the property. This type of home, on similarly sized -lots, is common in New Brighton. <br />4) The variance will not alter the essential character of the locality. <br />Staff is not convinced this criterion is met. The effect of a third story could have <br />unanticipated consequences in the neighborhood, even though it still fits within the 30' <br />height maximum. Staff is not aware of any home within the community that has a similar <br />feature to what is proposed. <br />5) The variance shall not be granted solely because of economic considerations. <br />The applicant has indicated their proposal is based only on architectural preference and not <br />driven by economics. <br />To conclude, the City of New Brighton processes less than one variance a year and staff is <br />unaware of any building height or story variances for a single family homes. Staff is also not <br />aware of any other home within the community with a similar design feature, even the applicants <br />home type is typical to New Brighton. Because of the lack of similar requests, and because the <br />proposal does not meet the "practical difficulties" threshold based on staff's analysis, staff does <br />not recommend approving a variance to add a third story. <br />STAFF RECOMMENDATION <br />Deny the request as submitted. <br />Janice Gundlach, Asst. Director of Community <br />Assets & Development/Planning Director <br />