#MIDDLEBURY
By TERRENCE S. MCAULIFFE
The Middlebury Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) at its March 1 meeting unanimously approved variances for a shed on Northridge Drive and for a house addition on Shadduck Road.
Attorney Michael McVerry told commissioners Alfred Vagnini bought a commercial generator to assure his house at 133 Northridge Drive had a continuous supply of electricity to support the requirements of his stepson with special needs. The house was purchased in July 2016 and an 8-by-12-foot shed constructed around the generator in the fall to protect it from rain and snow and to limit the noise.
McVerry said the generator received all the necessary building permits, but the location of the shed came into question when Zoning Enforcement Officer Curtis Bosco noticed it was in the front yard. This violates zoning requirements requiring accessory buildings to be in the rear. McVerry said the generator was in the front yard because of proximity to existing propane tanks and electrical service from the street. He said the slope of the rear yard and an existing in-ground swimming pool ruled out any other location, and it was far from neighboring properties.
Commissioners agreed topography of the land was a hardship. They approved the variance with the stipulation shrubbery be maintained on three sides and the shed removed when the generator was removed.
Kevin Mullan, general contractor for Matthew Tylinski, told commissioners a proposed addition at 188 Shadduck Road would require a variance from the zoning regulation 25-foot setback requirement. He said the hardship was the location of sewer lines, the well, rock walls and the driveway. Mullan explained the addition would come forward, extending a side of the house that is already non-conforming. Using an A2 survey, he showed where the road layout changed when I-84 was constructed, producing a revised street line and a triangle of land that would satisfy the setback. “The problem is,” Mullan said, “we don’t know who owns it.”
Commissioners approved the variance, agreeing the property was never maintained by the state and was effectively owned by Tylinski.
The next ZBA meeting will be Wednesday, April 5, at 7:30 p.m. at Shepardson Community Center.
