By TERRENCE S. MCAULIFFE
The Middlebury Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) at its May 4 meeting unanimously approved a garage at Tyler Cove and a porch on Nick Road. It also elected Ken Long as chairman and Bill Bellotti as vice-chairman.
Long was unanimously voted as chairman to take over for David Alley, who resigned in February because of business time commitments. Bellotti was voted as vice-chairman to serve in Long’s absence. Both had been chairing ZBA meetings since Alley’s resignation.
Attorney Michael McVerry, representing owners George and Diane Nybakken, told commissioners an application to add a garage next to their 10 Tyler Cove cottage at Lake Quassapaug had been denied by the Planning and Zoning Commission in 2006 because there were no standards from which to make an approval. The regulations were amended in August 2015 to define cottage boundaries to be the same as condominium unit boundaries in the R-40-zoned Tyler Cove homeowner association, creating an overlay district that allows lots smaller than an acre. The variance was unanimously approved as the only feasible location for a garage due to the lot size and the location of the lake.
James Christiano, owner of a house at 72 Nick Road, told commissioners he wanted to add a second story and rebuild a porch to extend out eight feet. This would intrude approximately seven feet into the minimum street line setback. He said the hardship was the need for a porch to protect the front of the house from further rotting. The variance was unanimously approved based on measurements Christiano provided, but Long warned him the building department would require a formal survey for his construction permits.
The next ZBA meeting will be Wednesday, June 1, at 7:30 p.m. at Shepardson Community Center.
