HomeMy WebLinkAbout20250743 112 Fifth Ave. Area Variance NODPage 1 of 2
CITY OF SARATOGA
SPRINGS
ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
CITY HALL - 474 BROADWAY
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NEW YORK 12866
518-587-3550
WWW.SARATOGA-SPRINGS.ORG
Gage Simpson, Chair
Brendan Dailey, Vice Chair
Shafer Gaston
Amanda Demma
Jonah Cohen
Otis Maxwell
Chris LaPointe
Chris Maslak (Alternate)
#20250743
IN THE MATTER OF THE APPEAL OF
Witt Construction
563 North Broadway Suite 1
Saratoga Springs, New York 12866
from the determination of the Building Inspector involving the premises 112 5th Ave. in the City of Saratoga
Springs, New York being tax parcel number 166.14-4-38 on the Assessment Map of said City.
The applicant having applied for an area variance under the UDO of said City to permit the construction of a
single-family home and driveway in the UR-1 district and public notice having been duly given of hearings on
said application on September 29 through November 17, 2025.
In consideration of the balance between benefit to the applicants with detriment to the health, safety and welfare
of the community, I move that the following area variances for the following amounts of relief:
TYPE OF REQUIREMENT DISTRICT
DIMENSIONAL
REQUIREMENT
PROPOSED RELIEF REQUESTED
MAXIMUM BUILDING COVERAGE 28% 37.8% 9.8% (35%)
TOTAL SIDE YARD SETBACK 30 FT 27.8 FT 2.2 FT (7.3%)
REAR YARD SETBACK 30 FT 19.4 FT 10.6 FT (35.3%)
As per the submitted plans (excluding the driveway) or lesser dimensions, be approved for the following
reasons:
1. Achievability by Other Means: The applicant has demonstrated this benefit cannot be achieved by
other means feasible to the applicant. The applicant would like to remove an existing home and build a
new single-family home. Per the applicant, the existing home does not meet the homeowners’ needs to
age in place. No additional land is available for purchase.
2. Undesirable Change: The applicant has demonstrated that granting this variance will not create an
undesirable change in neighborhood character or detriment to nearby properties. The Board finds that the
applicant has demonstrated that the requested variances align with other properties in the neighborhood.
3. Substantiality: The Board finds that several of these variances are significant. The large variances are
mitigated by the nature of the pre-existing, non-conforming undersized lot and the neighborhood context
mentioned above.
4. Adverse Effect or Impact: The Board finds that these variances will not have significant adverse
physical or environmental effects on the neighborhood or district.
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5. Self-Created Difficulty: The alleged difficulty is self-created insofar as the applicant desires to build a
single-family home with driveway, but this is not necessarily fatal to the application.
Condition: Permeable pavers are required for the driveway and patio to maintain compliance with the district
requirement.
Dated: November 17, 2025
Passes by the following vote:
AYES: 6 (G. Simpson, S. Gaston, O. Maxwell, A. Demma, C. LaPointe, S. Harrigan)
NAYS: 0
This variance shall expire 18 months following the filing date of such decision unless the necessary
building permit has been issued and actual construction begun as per the Unified Development
Ordinance.
I hereby certify the above to be a full, true and correct copy of a resolution duly adopted by the Zoning
Board of Appeals of the City of Saratoga Springs on the date above mentioned, seven members of the Board
being present.
SIGNATURE:
CHAIR