Heritage Lane garage plan pairs a smaller setback with less hard surface

A proposed garage addition at 355 Heritage Lane would cut the required front setback in half—from 50 feet to 25 feet. Elizabeth “Betsy” Katekovich is asking Alpharetta for the variance as part of a renovation that would turn the existing front-facing garage into living space and add a side-entry garage.⁠[1]

In her October 29 letter of intent, Katekovich says the 0.408-acre Milton Estates property, at Heritage Lane and Mayfield Circle, has little room to expand elsewhere. She cites a stream along the rear property line, a 150-foot stream buffer and floodplain constraints, arguing that the front is the only available location for the garage addition.⁠[1]

The plan includes a counterintuitive detail: the renovation would leave less of the lot covered by impervious surfaces. Its coverage calculations project a decline from 5,948.74 to 5,438.61 square feet—about 510 square feet less—with the share of the lot covered falling from 33.4% to 30.6%. Those are proposed figures, not completed work.⁠[1]

One measurement needs clarification. The application and letter request a 25-foot front setback, but the accompanying variance plan labels it 24 feet. The materials reviewed do not resolve that one-foot difference.⁠[1]

The packet includes a signed neighbor letter supporting the written 50-to-25-foot request. It does not establish a hearing date or whether Alpharetta has acted on the variance.⁠[1]