Garden City Holding Public Meeting to Discuss Building Code Changes

The Garden City Board of Trustees is likely to hold a public hearing at its Dec. 15 meeting to discus proposed changes to the village’s building code.

The recommended changes are being put forward by the mayor’s Committee on Building Code Changes, which was created last spring in response to growing concerns throughout the village over the proliferation of large houses being built on smaller lots.

The first proposed code change is designed to preserve streetscapes by increasing the minimum required distance between the side of a new or expanded house and an adjacent home by approximately three feet. The initially proposed setbacks for second stories has been eliminated in an effort to avoid a “wedding cake” appearance and enable more effective architectural design of the second story. There is no change to existing height or bulk restrictions.

The second change centers on the demolition of homes. Presently, there is no requirement for an owner after demolition to fill in the foundation, grade the property or plant grass. Failing to do this would adversely affect home values and the ability to market properties. The change would require the owner to do all of the above. A bond or some other form of liquid security would also be required if the village has to mitigate the problem of a vacant lot that has been indefinitely left as an eyesore.

The final change attempts to more clearly define the Architectural Design Review Board’s authority regarding major alterations to the exterior of a house visible from the street by removing some subjectivity from the existing code. There would be more formal guidelines to obtain ADRB approval for an extension, structural changes or major alterations that could impact the streetscape. Roof repairs, new roofs, paint jobs, window replacements or other home improvements such as new driveway paving or sliding doors to an outside yard would not require ADRB approval.

“I have spoken with a number of other mayors and building superintendents, and found that some villages have building codes that are far more restrictive than the changes under consideration here,” said Garden City Mayor Nicholas P. Episcopia. “For example, some will not issue a demolition permit unless the applicant has an approved set of plans for a replacement structure in place.”

Photo: Suzie Alvey