THE DENIAL OF AN AREA VARIANCE FOR A GARAGE WHICH WAS BELOW THE MAXIMUM HEIGHT BUT WAS FOUR FEET HIGHER THAN THE RESIDENCE WAS NOT “IRRATIONAL;” THIRD DEPARTMENT REVERSED BY THE COURT OF APPEALS (CT APP).

The Third Department, reversing Supreme Court, over a two-justice dissent, determined the denial of petitioner’s request for an area variance for a garage which was four feet higher than the residence was irrational. The Court of Appeals reversed:

From the Third Department decision:

The relevant question presented by petitioner’s application was whether a four-foot area variance would be out of character with the surrounding neighborhood in an instance, as here, where both structures are under the maximum height limit for an accessory structure and the residence is far below the height limit for a dwelling. … Respondent did not explain why this height differential, in context, would prove detrimental to the neighboring community. * * *

As to “feasible” alternatives, the difficulty here is that the garage had already been constructed before petitioner consolidated the lots and applied for the variance. While this situation may fairly be characterized as self-created, * * * neither respondent nor Supreme Court accounted for the statutory qualifier that a self-created problem, while relevant, “shall not necessarily preclude the granting of the area variance” (Town Law § 267-b [3] [b] [5]). Nor did respondent or Supreme Court address the clear benefit to petitioner of maintaining her garage, as compared to the prospect of having to remove the structure and the attendant financial loss … . Matter of Williams v Town of Lake Luzerne Zoning Bd. of Appeals, 2025 NY Slip Op 04509, Third Dept 7-31-25

Reversed by the Court of Appeals: Matter of Williams v Town of Lake Luzerne Zoning Bd. of Appeals
2026 NY Slip Op 00639, CtApp 2-11-26