The decision by the Jamestown Zoning Board of Appeals to grant a variance request to Lynn Development for business offices at the Sheldon House has been annulled.

On Friday, the Appellate Division Fourth Judicial Department of the state Supreme Court in Rochester released their ruling in favor of the petitioners, Paul Leone, Dr. Ann Servoss and Timothy Mills. All three petitioners live near the Sheldon House, located at 7 Falconer St.

According to the ruling, Jamestown Community College and Lynn Development failed to present any evidence to the city Zoning Board that satisfies the first variance request requirement of unnecessary hardship. According to the Appellate Division’s ruling, this meant JCC and Lynn Development did not prove they could not realize a reasonable return on the property by any conforming use.

“In the absence of such evidence in dollars and cents form, there is no rational basis for the ZBA’s finding that the premises would not yield a reasonable return in the absence of the requested use variance and, for that reason, we conclude that the ZBA’s determination must be annulled,” the Appellate Division’s ruling stated.

The case started in May 2016 when the city Zoning Board approved a use variance to allow for business offices at the Sheldon House, which is located in a single-family residential zone. The zoning variance was necessary to clear the way for Lynn Development to purchase the Sheldon House from Jamestown Community College.

In January 2016, the Jamestown Community College Board of Trustees approved a proposal from Lynn Development to purchase the Sheldon House. Before the $240,000 sale could be finalized, the city Zoning Board had to approve the use variance to allow Lynn Development to renovate the Sheldon House into office space.

In May 2016, Leone, along with his wife, Servoss, who live on Lakeview Avenue, and Mills, who lives on Falconer Street, first appealed the use variance granted by the city Zoning Board of Appeals to state Supreme Court in Mayville. In August 2016, state Supreme Court Judge Frank Sedita III dismissed the appeal, upholding the city Zoning Board’s use variance.

The state Appellate Division in Rochester heard the case on May 16. The local residents were represented by attorney Daryl Brautigam of Fredonia, while Stephen Abdella represented Jamestown Community College; Marilyn Fiore-Lehman represented the city of Jamestown Zoning Board of Appeals; and Kristen M. Lee Yaw represented Lynn Development.

Since the use variance decision made in May 2016, the local residents have argued the city Zoning Board didn’t follow the criteria established to issue a use variance. The four criteria points include:

¯ The applicant cannot realize a reasonable return, provided that lack of return is substantial as demonstrated by competent financial evidence.

¯ The alleged hardship relating to the property in question is unique and does not apply to a substantial portion of the district or neighborhood.

¯ The requested use variance, if granted, will not alter the essential character of the neighborhood.

¯ The alleged hardship has not been self-created.