Latest news with #ZoningHearingBoard
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Wilkes-Barre Zoning Hearing Board approves nail and hair salon, housing unit
May 22—WILKES-BARRE — Applications for a new nail and beauty salon, along with more housing, were among those approved Wednesday at Wilkes-Barre's monthly Zoning Hearing Board meeting. Ivelisse Professional Building LLC was approved for special exception to add one apartment unit to a building at 425 S. Main St., bringing the total to five apartment units, along with two retail spaces on the first floor. Per the design plans presented at the meeting, the building will contain two one-bedroom apartments, two three-bedroom apartments and one two-bedroom apartment. The plans reflect a scaled-back version of a set previously presented to the Zoning Hearing Board, when they asked for a special exception for 9 apartment units, which was denied. All of the apartments are unoccupied, along with one of the commercial spaces. Building owner Ivelisse De La Cruz has operated a business out of the left-hand side commercial space for last decade, where she offers service such as title and tag registration, money transfers, and home and auto insurance. The applicant was also approved for a variance to waive six parking spaces. The building will then have 13 off-street parking spots in the back of the building instead of the usual 19. Attorney Frank Hoegen, representing De La Cruz, said potential tenants will have reserved parking spaces. The owner also intends to renovate the building's exterior and finish the whole outside in brick and stucco. Per city code, additional windows will also be installed for the apartment units, and the bottom floor, rear apartment, will be updated to become ADA compliant. A variance to waive the front yard setback from 10 feet to 3 feet was approved to construct a third-floor addition to accommodate an internal stairwell. The two retail spaces on the bottom floor will be slightly reduced in size because of this. Hoegen stated that a requested waiver of Section 1014 of the zoning ordinance — Grading, Pavement and Drainage — was no longer needed, as the owner intends to comply with the regulations. The application was amended to reflect the withdrawn variance. Gary Druby, who owns Abe's Hot Dogs next door, expressed concern about the potential traffic the additional apartment unit would bring. Hoegen countered this by saying that a traffic study had not been conducted and the previous four apartment units had been in existence for "a long time." The application was eventually approved on the condition that the applicant construct a greenery strip along Sullivan Street to deter unwanted ingress or egress from the proposed parking lot. Nail salon and beauty shop Additionally, Caroline Suarez de Romero was approved for a special exception to change a nonconforming use from a party planner and rental business to a nail and beauty salon at 89 Lehigh St. A variance to waive two parking spaces for the proposed use was also granted. Natalie Mejia, who served as an interpreter for Suarez de Romero, said she planned to have three chairs in the shop: one for pedicures, one for manicures, and one for hair styling. Services would be provided by appointment only, from 9 a.m. to roughly 7 p.m., Monday through Saturday. The application was approved on the condition that the applicant agree to have no more than two employees. Board Member Leon S. Schuster moved to include the conditional approval because he felt any additional traffic would not be appropriate for a residential area. Application withdrawn, to be resubmitted One application on Wednesday's agenda was withdrawn by the applicant, Coal Region Realty LLC, which originally applied for a special exception to change a nonconforming use from a vacant 2,400 square foot garage and storage building located at 402-404 Park Avenue to a storage building containing a personal vehicle maintenance garage. The property also contains four residential units. Jared Lekowski, owner of Coal Region Realty, stated he planned to rent the storage garage to a man from New York, who would use the space to store vehicles as well as material he collects from cleaning out homes. Several board members felt that explanation fell outside of a personal use. "That doesn't sound like personal vehicle," said Board Chair Hayden White. "I mean, that sounds like a business that's renting out your garage." Additionally, the potential tenant was not present for the board to ask questions. Because of that, the board suggested Lekowski withdraw the application and submit a new one that more accurately described the proposed use. The board also suggested the tenant come to next meeting to answer questions. Resident Gary Ankner, who owns the neighboring property, also expressed a desire to get more information from the potential tenant, as he was worried about possible noise disruptions. Other agenda items Three other applications were approved Wednesday, including: —Brian Krahel for the property located within a R-1 zone at 240 Matson Avenue for variances to waive the required side yard and rear yard setbacks from the required 5 feet decreased to 3 feet respectively, to construct a shed. —Veronica Cruz for the property located within a R-1 zone at 158 High St. for a variance to extend the width of an existing driveway from 20 feet to a total of 38 feet. Cruz initially asked for 46 feet, but agreed to 38 feet instead. —Birdhouse Outdoor for the property located within an M-1 zone at 421 N. Pennsylvania Avenue for a variance to install three nonilluminated vinyl advertisement wall signs. The application was approved on the condition that the applicant provide an additional signature from the building owner on the zoning appeal part of the application.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Home florist business, parking lot approved by Wilkes-Barre Zoning Hearing Board
Feb. 19—WILKES-BARRE — A home occupation florist business was the topic of much discussion at Wednesday's Zoning Hearing Board meeting, and the hearing for a proposed apartment and bakery project was continued until next month. Local developer Sam Syla, under 126 South 45th Street LLC, applied for a special exception to change a nonconforming use of a building at 81 Waller St. containing 20,000 square feet of vacant light industrial space to 10,000 square feet of warehouse space on the first floor and 10 apartments on the second floor. However, it was announced at the end of the meeting that the hearing for that proposed project would be continued until March 19. No representative from 126 South 45th Street LLC was present at Wednesday's meeting. A home occupation florist business was approved by the board so long as the home and business owner Kelly Ann Nilon, of 18 Donald Court, complies with section 702.24 of the city code. This section, specifically item G, states, "The home occupation shall be carried on only by members of the immediate family residing in the dwelling, plus not more than one additional employee." Nilon explained customers purchase her flower arrangements from an online shop and she puts them together at her home and delivers the flowers to her customer's homes. She said she gets about 10 to 13 orders a week. Since the flowers are delivered, Nilon said there wouldn't be an influx of traffic to her home, which rests on a cul de sac. Nilon, who works full time as a teacher, has a shed in the front of her home, where she stores her supplies. Although she said she might want to fully operate her business from the shed at some point in the future, she does not have the means to do that now. Renee Conahan, a neighbor, opposed granting the special exception because she believed a "retail business should not operate in a neighborhood." She also brought up issues with parking and the potential affect on her property's value. Conahan also mentioned an issue with a vehicle blocking her driveway on Valentine's Day. Additionally, Conahan said she didn't approve of Nilon's shed, saying, "We don't believe in placing a shed in your front yard. We don't believe it's appropriate or allowed, especially without asking for approval prior to putting it down and notifying the neighborhood." When asked by Board member Stephen M. Trimingham, Nilon stated that she had previously received a zoning permit for the shed and the current location of the shed was approved. Additionally, Hen Hen Reality LLC was approved for a special exception to establish a limited parking lot for 8 vehicles at 21 W. Elm St; a variance to waive the rear yard and side yard setback from the required 15 feet decreased to 0 feet; and a variance to waive the required screening and planting strips for the proposed parking lot. The next zoning hearing meeting will take place at 4:30 p.m. March 19 inside council chambers at city hall.
