WHEN WOULD I BE REQUIRED TO GO BEFORE THE ZBA?
Subdividing a property where the newly created lot would not meet the Town's minimum requirements for acreage and road frontage (Area Variance)
Building on a Class VI road (i.e. a road not maintained by the Town) (a Relief of Administrative Decision and Area Variance would both be required)
Building an accessory apartment on a house that has been certified for occupancy for less than three years (Area Variance)
Wanting to use a property for reasons other than what it is zoned for (Use Variance)
Operating a business from a residential home (Special Exception)
Disagreeing with the Zoning Officer's interpretation of a particular section of the ordinance (Relief of Administrative Decision)
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Whenever a landowner is seeking to do something that is not allowed according to the Town's zoning ordinance, they can appeal to the
Zoning Board of Adjustment for relief from a particular condition or a decision they feel was made in error by the Zoning Officer.
(See the four types of appeals listed on
ZBA homepage.)
The most common reason why a resident would need to appear before the
ZBA would be when they would like to build a structure on their property that does not meet building setbacks (e.g. to request that
a proposed addition be allowed to be 20 feet to a front lot line when a minimum of 40 feet is required by the ordinance). This
would entail requesting an
Area Variance.
Other Common examples are (but are not limited to):
