HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/12/1980VARIANCE AND PERMIT COMMISSION
Town of Los Altos Hills
26379 Fremont Road
Los Altos Hills, California
MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING
Wednesday, March 12, 1980
Reel 84, Side 2, Tr. 2, 065 to 274
Chairman Stewart called the meeting of the Variance and Permit Commission to order
at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the Town Hall.
ROLL CALL:
Present: Commissioners Kuranoff, Lachenbruch and Stewart
Absent: None
Also Present: City Engineer/Planner John Carlson, Secretary Ethel Hopkins
APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
The Minutes of February 27 were amended on Page two, paragraph two, second line
of the paragraph to read: "...held by the Town until the lawsuit by Dr. Fink is
settled and then relinquished if the lawsuit is in the favor of the Town." The
Minutes were declared approved as amended by Chairman Stewart with the implied
consent of the Commissioner in attendance at the meeting, Commissioner Carico.
PUBLIC HEARINGS:
1. LANDS OF CHENG, File #VAR. 2-80, 12950 Cortez Lane, Request for Recommendation of
Approval of Variance in Side Setback for Solar Energy System:
Mr. Carlson discussed the above request and noted that he had no further statements
other than those contained in his March 7 staff report.
Commissioner Lachenbruch asked about the adjacent neighbors who might be affected by
the solar panel construction and whether the construction would be visible to adjacent
property owners. Thereafter the hearing was opened to the public discussion.
Dah Yu Cheng, 12950 Cortez Lane, Applicant, stated that adjacent neighbors would not
be affected by the proposed construction and that they had expressed their approval
of his variance request by signing the variance application. He discussed the necessity
of having the solar panels where he had proposed them on his lot, the benefits he would
gain from the use of solar power, landscaping that would shield the solar panels from
the view of neighbors, and finally, requested that the Commissioners recommend approval
of his request.
Commissioner Stewart expressed concern that the solar panels would be observable from
neighbors' back yards. He also expressed dismay that the Subdivision Committee had
met and considered this request without waiting for him to arrive at the meeting. The
Commission began a review of the six conditions for the granting of the variance:
�r Condition 1: Commissioner Stewart suggested that a generator might be used to
mitigatethedanger of power outage and so allow the panels to be
located in another location other than \the heat storage tank.
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VARIANCE AND PERMIT COMMISSION MINUTES - March 12, 1980
Page two
kw PUBLIC HEARINGS: (continued)
1. LANDS OF CHENG, File #VAR. 2-80: (continued)
Mr. Cheng observed that the purpose of saving energy would be
defeated with the installation of a generator.
Condition 2: It was noted that the topography of the land, sloping to the
north, created the problem of having to locate the solar panels
as proposed. Mr. Cheng noted that solar panels in another location
would look odd from Black Mountain, and that paybacks from solar
power use were such that the proposed location was an important factor.
Commissioner Kuranoff questioned why the solar panels could not be
located in separate ranks on the roof area and why the structures
could not be reduced to lessen the impact on the setback area.
Mr. Cheng responded that that "H" shape of the house floor plan
was a limitation on where he could locate the panels, and that the
design proposed was the best way to cope with the problems of the
land and house design constraints.
Condition 3: It was noted by the Commissioners that every lot in the Town does
not accommodate all the amenities an owner might desire.
Condition 4: Some concern was expressed for the views of neighbors, especially the
view from the Marsh property. However, in light that all neighbors had
signed in consent to the variance, this item was accepted as satisfied.
Some suggestions were made on planting to mitigate the view onto the
Cheng property, but Mr. Cheng noted that this planting had already
been done.
The public hearing was closed, and the concensus of the Commissioners was that except
for concern for the view from the Marsh property, all of the reasons for the granting
of the variance were acceptable as stated in the Staff report dated March 7.
MOTION SECONDED AND CARRIED: It was moved by Commissioner Lachenbruch and seconded
by Commissioner Kuranoff that a recommendation of approval be given for the Lands of
Cheng, File #VAR. 2-80, with conditions and reasons as stated in the staff report.
VOTE: AYES: Commissioners Kuranoff and Lachenbruch
NOES: Commissioner Stewart
ADJOURNMENT:
There being no further new or old business, the meeting was adjourned by Chairman
Stewart at 7:40 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Ethel Hopkins
Secretary