2. Hearing Officer Minutes

Hearing Officer Meeting Minutes
October 23, 2025
A meeting of the City of Yuma Hearing Officer was held on Thursday, October 23, 2025, at City Hall
Council Chambers, One City Plaza, Yuma, Arizona.
HEARING OFFICER in attendance was Ray Urias.
CITY OF YUMA STAFF MEMBERS present included Jennifer Albers, Assistant Director of Planning;
Zenia Fiveash, Assistant Planner; John LeSeuer, Assistant City Attorney and Alejandro Marquez,
Administrative Specialist.
Hearing Officer Ray Urias called the meeting to order at 9:30 a.m.
CONSENT CALENDAR
Hearing Officer Ray Urias approved the minutes of October 9, 2025.
ITEMS REQUIRING COMMISSION DISCUSSION AND ACTION
VAR-44509-2025: This is a request by Whitey Wiles Construction on behalf of Raul & Esmeralda Estrada
for a variance to allow an accessory structure height 4 feet 3 inches taller than the principal building of 11
feet 3 inches for the construction of a new garage/workshop in the Low Density Residential/Infill Overlay
(R-1-6/lO) District, for the property located at 1220 S. 8" Avenue, Yuma, AZ.
Zenia Fiveash, Assistant Planner, summarized the staff report and recommended APPROVAL
QUESTIONS FOR STAFF
Hearing Officer Ray Urias asked for confirmation on whether the variance request was only for the height
deviation from the City’s requirements. Fiveash replied yes. Hearing Officer Urias then went over the Four
Criteria of the Yuma City Code and asked if criteria numbers one through three had not been met. Fiveash
replied yes. Hearing Officer Urias then stated that criteria four had been met. Fiveash answered yes.
Hearing Officer Urias stated that in order to grant the variance, he would need to find that criteria one
through three are met.
Hearing Officer Urias commented that he toured the neighborhood and noticed that there are homes in
the area that have pitched roofs and that the applicant's home did not. Fiveash replied that the home has
a slightly pitched roof. Hearing Officer Urias then stated he does not agree with staffs analysis that the
home is typical to other homes in the area. Hearing Officer Urias commented that he was in agreement
with staff that accessory structures should match the height, size, and materials of the main building and
neighborhood, and noted that the proposed project does not fit the character of the existing home. Hearing
Officer Urias went on to say that the neighborhood is zoned residential and that the property’s principal
use is for a home and if a accessory structure is built on the property it should resemble the home.
Hearing Officer Urias stated that the home could possibly suffer from a unique hardship due to it having
the flattest roof in the area and that the applicant did not cause that because he purchased the home that
way. Hearing Officer Urias then stated that he was not confident enough to consider that a special
circumstance or a unique hardship.
Hearing Officer Urias asked for confirmation that the applicant is asking for 4 foot 3 inches above the City’s
requirement for an accessory structure. Fiveash replied yes. Hearing Officer Urias then stated if the
request for less of a difference he could possibly consider it a special circumstance.
Hearing Officer Meeting Minutes
October 23, 2025
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Hearing Officer Urias asked if the height of the accessory structure was measured from the ground up.
Fiveash replied yes. Hearing Officer Urias then asked if the applicant were to dig a hole that was 4 feet
deep, which would make the accessory structure meet the height requirement, would that be allowed.
Jennifer Albers, Assistant Director of Planning replied that the question may fall under building code
requirements. Albers then noted that the height of a house is measured at the peak and that this structure
is not located behind the peak of the house but rather behind the garage and that it will be made of metal
and much larger than the existing garage.
APPLICANT/APPLICANTS REPRESENTATIVE
Bob Wiles, on behalf of Whitey Wiles Construction, introduced the homeowner Raul Estrada and
stated that he would assist the homeowner with any specific questions.
Hearing Officer Urias asked for confirmation if the structure was to be made of metal. Estrada replied yes.
Hearing Officer Urias then asked does it have to be a metal building. Wiles answered that in conventional
construction, any structure over 12 feet in height would require a structural engineer to design it, where a
pre-engineered metal building already includes the necessary design criteria. Hearing Officer Urias then
asked if the structure could be less than 16 feet 3 inches. Estrada asked how much shorter would the
structure need to be. Hearing Officer Urias replied around 13 feet. Estrada answered he would like to
keep the size of the building. Hearing Officer Urias stated that he is trying to find a hardship because the
house is shorter than others in the area.
Hearing Officer Urias stated that he was having difficulty finding that the structure met Criteria 3, noting
that the applicant could construct other types of structures that would not need to be as tall. Estrada asked
if it would be possible to lower the structure by 1 foot making it 15 feet tall. Hearing Officer Urias then
stated that he noticed the garage would be approximately 800 square feet while the home is about 1,100
square feet, making the garage nearly the same size as the home. Hearing Officer Urias then added that
the structure should be smaller in scale compared to the primary residence.
Hearing Officer Urias stated that he is trying to find a hardship because the house is smaller than others
in the area. Wiles stated at the time the subdivision was built it was considered an average size home.
Albers stated that when staff calculates the size of an accessory structure, they include all areas under the
roof of the home, which would be inclusive of the garage area.
PUBLIC COMMENT
None
DECISION
Hearing Officer Ray Urias denied the request to allow an accessory structure height 4 feet 3 inches taller
than the principal building of 11 feet 3 inches for the construction of a new garage/workshop in the Low
Density Residential/Infill Overlay (R-1-6/IO) District, for the property located at 1220 S. 8" Avenue, Yuma,
AZ.
Hearing Officer Ray Urias then stated that the applicant has the right to appeal the decision.
Hearing Officer Ray Urias adjourned the meeting at 9:55 a.m.
Hearing Officer Meeting Minutes
October 23, 2025
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Hearing Officer Meeting Minutes
October 23, 2025
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