Seeking to add a fire pit, patios, walkways, and other accessory structures to the 25 Fithian Lane property where they are building a house, George E. Doty Jr. and his wife, Le-Ellen Spelman, requested variances from the East Hampton Village Zoning Board of Appeals on Friday.
The couple told the board they are building their “dream home,” which Mr. Doty described as a “wildly scary project.” The 1.4-acre parcel contains an existing tennis and basketball court, and the owners are adding a new two-story house, garage, swimming pool, and spa.
Mr. Doty said he needs relief from the code because “I’ve run out of lot coverage.” He is seeking 13,131 square feet of coverage where the maximum allowed is 11,821 square feet, as well as a variance to install a generator 50.7 feet from the front yard lot line, where the required setback is 55 feet.
The patios and walkways are needed, he said, “to avoid muddying my feet as I attempt to get to the spa and pool.”
“That didn’t occur to you when you were planning it?” asked Lys Marigold, the chairwoman.
“I don’t think you should muddy your feet, but you’re asking for a lot here,” said Craig Humphrey, a board member. “You already have a tennis court, a basketball court, a swimming pool, and a hot tub, and now you want more.” Rather than seek a variance, Mr. Humphrey suggested the owners reconfigure the existing site plan to make room for the additional structures.
“I have to agree,” said Ms. Marigold. “This is essentially a new build, and we have been fairly consistent in saying no to other new builds who want more. I don’t in good conscience see how we can say yes to you when we’ve denied so many other people. Redesign it so you are more in compliance with the square feet the code allows.”
Mr. Doty, who owns an adjoining vacant lot as well, said he had hoped board members would take into consideration that he has chosen not to build on that lot, and he was disappointed that they had not. “I don’t feel that this is a particularly fair result,” he said.
The hearing was adjourned.
The Z.B.A. also announced five determinations. Norman and Helene Stark, the owners of 33 Lily Pond Lane, were denied permission to demolish an existing house and patio located seaward of the coastal erosion hazard area line, and construct a new residence, two stairways, a patio, and a retaining wall, also seaward of the line. The proposed patio would have been 144 feet from the edge of beach grass, where a 150-foot setback is required. The board also denied permission to allow the proposed residence to be 39.5 feet high, where 34 feet is the maximum.
The Starks were, however, given leave to maintain a number of unauthorized structures, including a 77-square-foot addition to the existing house, two cellarways, a shed, a walkway to the shed, retaining walls, and a circular patio. Both cellarways and the addition are within the required setback from the beach grass, as well as in a special flood hazard zone, and one cellarway is 90 feet from the 15-foot contour line of the dune, where a 100-foot setback is required.
The maintenance of a generator 4.8 feet from the rear yard lot line, where the required setback is 20 feet, was also permitted.
The variances were granted with several conditions. The Starks must revegetate an illegally cleared area with American beach grass “in culms of two or three on 18-inch centers”; they must remove structures that are within a scenic easement, and they must submit to the Z.B.A., for approval by its attorney, an approved survey showing the scenic easement. A certificate of occupancy will be issued once the conditions are met. The Starks have one year from the date of the determination to obtain the certificate.
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church was granted permission to construct a new 20-square-foot columbarium to hold funeral urns‚ provided that the Design Review Board gives its approval. The columbarium will bring the church’s lot coverage to 41,814 square feet, where the legally pre-existing amount is 41,794 square feet and permitted coverage is 16,058 square feet.
Arthur Zeckendorf, a co-owner of 86 Georgica Road, was granted permission to reconstruct a garage/cottage 6.9 feet from the front lot line, where 50 feet is allowed, and 2.4 feet from its closest side yard lot line, where 34 feet is allowed.
Thomas S. Prendergast, the owner of the historical Stephen Hedges house at 3 Therese Court, can construct a detached garage 24.8 feet high, where the maximum permitted is 20 feet, provided the Design Review Board agrees.
The Thomas Moran Trust, which owns the Thomas and Mary Nimmo Moran Studio and house on Main Street, was granted permission to allow retail sales on the premises, and to hold up to three events per year with a maximum of 150 people. The board amended a 2012 determination that prohibited such sales and limited special events to no more than 50. The trust will also be able to make alterations to the parking area, to add path lighting, and to increase its lot coverage from 7,483 square feet to 8,130 square feet. The Design Review Board will have to sign off on all permissions.
