Michael Bell’s property is highlighted in yellow.
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Michael Bell originally asked for a variance to build a second structure on his property where his mother would live.
After learning the city of Seymour doesn’t allow more than one home on a lot, he was told to instead to have a surveyor help with replatting his property at 2179 Willow Drive East. Then he would be able to have the 1,200-square-foot home built, it would have a separate address and he would still own the property.
During a meeting Jan. 23 at city hall, the Seymour Board of Zoning Appeals denied his variance request on a 4-0 vote with Karen Munson absent. Despite that, Bell knows what he needs to do to make his plans happen in accordance with city code.
City Building Commissioner Jeremy Gray told Bell to stop by his office to get a replat form, and once the work is completed by a surveyor, the replat committee, consisting of Gray, city Engineer Bernie Hauersperger and Chad Keithley, will meet to consider approval.
Gray said per city ordinance, it takes a minimum of 1 acre to do a replat. Bell’s property currently consists of 7.38 acres and includes his home and a barn.
“This would be on the far north end of the property not visible from anyone’s home except my own,” Bell said.
BZA member Dave Eggers said his only concern about the variance request was having multiple addresses on one piece of property. One reason that’s not allowed per city ordinance is because it causes trouble for emergency services knowing where to go on a call to an address.
BZA President Rob Kaufman said half addresses, like in this case having it be 2179½, are not allowed, either.
“We try to keep one house on one lot for a reason. It’s just less confusion,” Gray said. “When they wrote the new ordinance, even the one prior to the brand-new one, that’s just not something that the city wanted was two houses on one lot. A lot of people think it’s just the newer ordinance that was drawn up in 2006. It was that way in the ‘94 version of the code, so it’s something that the city is pretty passionate about. We don’t do this.”
The BZA was provided with copies of letters of opposition received by the planning and zoning department regarding the variance request.
Rebecca Bolton, who lives nearby at 781 Willow Drive North, was the only person to attend the meeting. She said she wasn’t opposed to a house being built on the property, but she wanted to bring attention to some drainage issues in the neighborhood.
She said Willow Drive North and Willow Drive South seem to flood excessively more than they used to after heavy rains. Several houses are being built in the area, so she would like it to be checked out.
“Especially that corner where the cul-de-sac is, when it rains (heavily), the water stands. It used to never do that,” Bolton said. “It floods and it stands there for a couple hours, and then it will go down.”
She also said she’s really concerned about her backyard deteriorating in the last four years.
“The yard always sloped down, but now, it’s pretty much straight down,” Bolton said. “I’ve let weeds grow real tall up there. I used to mow down there. There’s no walking down there anymore.”
Since trees have been torn down near her home, she said the yard seems to be deteriorating more.
“I moved in this neighborhood because of the woods, and I know they can’t tear the trees down on this side of the ditch, but it has affected the neighborhood,” Bolton said.
Bell said he has not had any trees torn down on the side of his property.
“I don’t know if there’s something going on there that’s different than before,” he said. “All we did was put the driveway in. That’s the only thing done there.”
Bolton said she would like for someone to check out the water table and drainage in the neighborhood and her backyard, and Gray said he would contact county officials to have someone research that. It falls on the county due to this being in the city’s 2-mile fringe, not within city limits.