In 2000 the zoning board of appeals granted the petitioner a variance to permit the conversion of her one-car garage into a bedroom and bathroom to accommodate the special needs of her severely-disabled, paraplegic son on the condition that petitioner restore the property to its original use should any change in circumstance occur. In 2006, following the death of her son, the petitioner asked the zoning board to remove the conditions imposed upon the original variance to allow her to retain the property as renovated. The zoning board allowed the petitioner to maintain the conversion for one more year, after which she had to restore the property to its former condition. Following a hearing, in 2007 the zoning board agreed to allow the petitioner to continue the use for an additional period of three years and required her to reapply for a continuation of the use every three years thereafter. Additionally, the zoning board determined that should petitioner sell the property, she would be obligated to restore it to its former configuration. The petitioner brought a proceeding seeking to annul the determination and vacate the conditions. The Appellate Court overturned the decision of the trial court finding that the zoning board’s determination requiring the petitioner to reapply for a variance extension every three years should not have been annulled.
Calapai v. Zoning Board of Appeals of the Village of Babylon, 2008 WL 5413513 (N.Y.A.D. 2 Dept. 12/30/2008).
The opinion can be accessed at: http://www.nycourts.gov/reporter/3dseries/2008/2008_10620.htm
