Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-BZA-1978-05-01 TABLE OF CONTENTS 'i ii MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS , ITHACA, 'i i NEW YORK - MAY 1 , 1978 Page i ;; APPEAL NO. 1197 Gregory Katsoulis 1 j Zorba' s Restaurant 526 W. State Street i APPEAL NO. 1197 Executive Session 5 ' I APPEAL N0. 1199 Edmund Simmons 6 231 Wood Street APPEAL NO. 1199 Executive Session 8 ! APPEAL NO. 1200 George Johns 9 I ! 508 University Avenue i j APPEAL NO . 1200 Executive Session 12 i APPEAL NO. 1201 Albert D. Kelly 13 I Kelly' s Dockside Cafe 319 Taughannock Blvd. ii APPEAL NO. 1201 Executive Session 17 fAPPEAL NO. 1202 Richard Holgate 18 i 912-914 W. State Street APPEAL NO. 1202 Executive Session 20 'i APPEAL NO. 1203 Ithaca Laundries 21 ! 'i (Albert Smith for Grocery Store) 204 W. Seneca Street I I APPEAL NO. 1203 Executive Session 27 ' I APPEAL NO. 5-1-78 Ithaca Laundries 21 204 West Seneca Street I i' APPEAL NO. 5- 1-78 Executive Session 28 CERTIFICATION OF RECORDING SECRETARY 29 !� I APPEAL NO . 1172 Executive Session to determine 30 ! whether to rehear this appeal `{ N i j 1 i i j i r i i s ; BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS - CITY OF ITHACA COMMON COUNCIL CHAMBERS MAY 1 , 1978 ' A regular meeting of the Board of Zoning Appeals , City of Ithaca, j E was held in the Common Council Chambers , City Hall , Ithaca, New ; York on May 1 , 1978 . ;; PRESENT: Peter Martin, Chairman Judith Maxwell Dr. Martin Greenberg i William Wilcox Joseph Gainey, Jr. I 'j Thomas Hoard, Building Commis- sioner & Sec'y to the Board e Barbara Ruane , Recording Secy ` ABSENT: Gregory Kasprzak f !i The Board operates under the provisions of the Ithaca City Charter , !j tithe Ithaca Zoning Ordinance, the Ithaca Sign Ordinance. Our pro- '. �� ceedings , for those of you who have not been recently at a zoning 1'hearing, follow a fairly simple outline , we take the cases up in ! border. First we ask that the person who is presenting an appeal o t- line the basis of it . We then invite anyone else present who wants �i ijto present supporting testimony to do so . We then invite anyone 1who wishes to speak in opposition to do so on a particular case . After hearing all of .the pertinent testimony on one case , we move `!on to the next. After we have had our entire public hearing on thej ;',cases - our agenda for the evening, we then go into executive sessi n ii Ito deliberate on what we 've heard. After we 've had that we recon- ! I 11jvene in public session to announce the results of those deliberations , !the votes of the Board and the findings of fact on which they rest . i; !!Our proceedings are not governed by strict rules of evidence . We ;ado ask that all those who speak come to the front of the room, iden iltify themselves clearly by name and address and limit their remarks` ;Ito the issues that are before the Board. We invite people to speak! ;jand the Board typically will have some questions for them. Mr . 'i ;Secretary what is our first case? i jSECRETARY HOARD announced the first appeal to be heard : i jAPPEAL NO. 1197 : Appeal of Gregory Katsoulis for i an area variance under Section 30 . 25 Columns 4 , 12 , and 13 (off street parking requirements , and; I left and right side yard require i ii � f - 2 - ments) to permit expansion of the restaurant at 526 W. State Street (Zorba's) in a B-2 (commercial) .i use district. The proposed ex- pansion would extend the building to the west property line where , a five foot side yard is required. The property does not conform ti minimum side yard requirements , I I and has no off-street parking. ` CHAIRMAN MARTIN: I should say before we open the meeting if any- ; body is here under the mistaken impression that this is the public ; ,shearing on Community Development they are in the wrong place ; that ' s lin the Mayor' s Conference Room. i; i ROBERT STOLP: My name is Robert Stolp, I 'm an attorney located in ii the Clinton House and I 'm representing Mr . Katsoulis in his appli- i ;! cation for a variance. As Mr. Hoard said, the property now does nolt �4conform. There is not now, and to my understanding , ever been any ; liside - off lot - off-street parking. I have some photographs , i IIshould I have these marked for identification to show to the . . . . I '! CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Why don' t we mark them as exhibits in this case ;land you' ll leave them as part of the public record? I IMR. STOLP: Absolutely. li !; CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Right . Let them be marked with the address and j ! number them one through however many there are . MR. STOLP: What we are basically asking is permission to extend !i , the side lot approximately 5' to the adjoining property line . There ( is a portion of the property on that side which we are requesting �ith.e extension for that is already extended so we are requesting !! that we extend it from the side another 5 ' and along lengthwise I iifrom the front of the property approximately 201 . I believe when the ii IIBoard members see the photographs , that it will be very clear as tol, iexactly what we are intending to do. Basically our request is so ( that we can enlarge the kitchen area which is somewhat small now. RThere are no other restaurants in the area other than a small coffee ? shop and, as I previously said, there are no side lots on either siide Know. On the opposite side to which we request the extension there lis a joint driveway which is shared with a tenant in the other f Ii !11 j I 3 I ;. building. Both properties are owned by Mr. Ceracche. .; CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Okay. Could you explain perhaps in just - in ;; slightly more detail what the addition will permit by way of addi- tional capacity? I mean, you mention it being primarily used for ii + kitchen, will it increase the seating capacity at all? { IMR. STOLP: Absolutely not . ;' CHAIRMAN MARTIN: No increase in seating capacity? So it will ";! simply be more kitchen space? kj ; MR. STOLP: That is correct . Mr . Katsoulis and the proposed con- jtractor are both here , are willing to answer any questions that th ;' Board may have . ( MR. GAINEY: This extension that you are talking about is directly jbehind this wall? ! MR. STOLP: That ' s correct . If I may, this is the extension out !, further down down which is about 20 feet in from the store . These are lrestrooms (pointing to pictures) and this extension would just com i yup to this door here . All we are asking permission to do is actu- ( ! ally put a roof over here. ( MR. GAINEY: What is this building? (pointing) iiMR. STOLP : This is the building of the The kitchen is locate '; behind this wall right now we are asking permission to extend its i i over . . . j !! MR. GAINEY: What is over here? (pointing) I d MR. STOLP: I'm not sure. Mr. Katsoulis , this cement block building, �ldo you know who owns it? i� MR. KATSOULIS ; Ceracch.e owns the building. �I (More discussion took place but it wasn' t picked up on the tape recorder) . CHAIRMAN MARTIN: So the total dimensions in the addition, 5 ' x . . 1 ? IMR. STOLP: 5 x 20 approximately. !JCHAIRMAN MARTIN: So the essence of the argument is that the prope ty ;t already is In non-compliance with. the area requirements , . . lMR. STOLP: That ' s correct . i ,I ; CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Non-conforming situation and there is no way the r ;o 'i ii - 4 Ij the additional capacity could be put on the lot and comply and your ,,point is that since it will not remove existing off-street parking I!or cause any inconvenience to the neighbors that there is no ad- !!verse impact. Questions from members of the Board? �i MR. GAINEY: Yes , has the Fire Department been down to look this i hover? ! MR. STOLP: I don' t know whether they have or not. Have they? " MR. GAINEY: No complaints? ff ! CONTRACTOR: We are moving the present grill that' s out in the idining room back into the kitchen. Bringing the kitchen to the jrequired 2-hr. fire division. We are bringing it more up to code i) jjthan it is now. !MR. GAINEY: Okay. i CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Any further questions? I don' t see any. Do you ( have anything more to add? i> !!MR. STOLP : No, thank you. ;CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Alright , is there anyone else who would like to The heard on this case, anything further that the appellant would ki ;dike to say? Anything that anyone else would like to say relevant i! l Tito this case? It taken us then on to the next case . s= i i I! �i �I {i ii �I ii i! i� fi I! 's ij I i' fI ii i I it ij ki - ! BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS CITY OF ITHACA May j! 1 , 1978 I EXECUTIVE SESSION 4 APPEAL NO. 1197 : '. MR. GAINEY: I move that the area variance in case 1197 be granted. IMR. WILCOX: I second the motion. !i !; FINDINGS OF FACT : 1 . On the basis that they are adding to j the kitchen facilities to improve their l business and they are not enlarging the !f .,, seating capacity of the restaurant . 2 . Although the property at present does i� not have complying off-street parking I and fails to comply with other area re-1 I quirements of the zoning ordinance, the I proposed addition is a small one and , does not create any significant addi - tional problem. j 3. The proposed addition would permit i bringing the ktichen more into compli- ance with fire safety requirements . !I ! VOTE: 5 Yes ; 0 No . !I I I I Area variance granted. , 'i i ! �j ff I' I ! i it i� `{ I I ! I !; I i 'i 6 - ;; SECRETARY HOARD announced the next appeal to be heard: .;APPEAL NO. 1199 : Appeal of Mr. $ Mrs . Edmund Simmons for an area variance under Section 30 . 25 Columns 10 and 11 (maximum lot coverage permitted and required front yard set back) to add an extension to the exist- ing garage and add an enclosed stairway to the house at 231 Wood Street , in an R-2b (residential) use district. The property is deficient in front yard set-back and the additions will cause lJ the maximum lot coverage to be exceeded. i ;,TOM MC CARTHY: My name is Tom McCarthy, I am speaking for Mr . $ i 'IMrs. Simmons . The purpose of the addition is basically to enlarge i` the garage so that they can get their car in. Right now it is not ;;big enough to put the car in and secondly to enlarge or to enclose j ! the stairway into the basement which right now you have to go out- ;! ;'side in order to go down to the basement . Enclosing the stairway ii is basically about 70 - or a 9 x 8 addition. We have a set of plan ii !'here that I will distribute and the garage is just a two-foot exten- 11sion - just the bare minimum to get the car in. The house is in no - 1compliance now but that is a front yard set back, it ' s not a side ! yard set back . . . CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Okay. `MR. MC CARTHY: Do you want me to pass this around? I. ,,CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Is that the only area problem - is front yard set I� , back? I MR. MC CARTHY: I believe it is , isn' t it Tom? i {CHAIRMAN MARTIN: No lot coverage problem? i SMR. MC CARTHY: Yes , it' s 38% , yes . ;CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Okay, so there ' s a very slight lot coverage excess . i iThere ' s no increase at all in the living space, it' s simply a two- i i i1foot extension of the garage and enclosure of the stairway down to I11the ! the basement? f 11MR. MC CARTHY: Correct. I `CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Any question from members of the Board? How does i '!the extension of the garage relate to the side of the yard or to th� I ;nearest other property? j (i li ;i f� i f� II I i i f! - 7 - i) MR. MC CARTHY: Nothing really, other than just a front extension �Ias you can see on the plan. It would make it more accessible to `i get the car in - we could move it over a foot the doorway, that' i; all. I IjCHAIRMAN MARTIN: Are these plans to be left with us? ' MR. MC CARTHY: You have some. I !! MR. HOARD: I have the plans here. -il CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Are there any points that aren' t clear to member ` i hof the Board? Any questions? Thank you- , Mr. McCarthy. Is there c anyone else here to speak on this case? We will move on then to i; i the next. ii i I' Ij i I II I +( i it 'i f I i ! I iI f I! t is i -- i i �� 11 8 i BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS CITY OF ITHACA MAY 1 , 1978 i EXECUTIVE SESSION r jAPPEAL NO. 1199 : 'i ;; CHAIRMAN MARTIN: I move that the area variance requested. i¢ in case 1199(,be granted. ii MS . MAXWELL: I second the motion. i ; FINDINGS OF FACT : 1 . The proposed additions will not add tol a' i the living space but will merely permii the enclosure of a rear stairway fur- nishing access to the basement and an i expansion of the garage to make it uselble . jj 2 . The additions are small in size and ha e no adverse impact on neighborhing i i properties . 111 VOTE: 5 Yes ; 0 No. i l Area variance granted. ' i I �i i l i II l i, fil ; I f ii i c r �i rf Ik i i ;f ii i if ij - 9 - i ii SECRETARY HOARD announced the next appeal to be heard: ':. APPEAL NO. 1200 : Appeal of George John for an area var- iance under Section 30. 25 , Columns 4, If 6, 7 and 12 (off-street parking requir - ments , minimum lot size , lot width and side yard requirements) to permit con- version of the attic at 508 University , Avenue to an apartment . The property s which is located in an R-3a (residential) 'i use district has no off-streetp arkin , I and is deficient in meeting the minimu I lot size , width and side yard require- ments . There are now five apartments in the existing structure . 111GEORGE JOHN: My name is George John, I reside at 508 University HAvenue. I have lived there for twenty-seven (27) years , I have ;: never had trouble parking across the street on University Avenue. �i ! The question in my mind right now is that off-street parking or wh t ; can it be called? The city doesn' t maintain it, they've never ';Eplowed it. This year was the first time it was ever plowed, only Ibecause of a hazard when we had the flood condition on Fall Street it ; and they made traffic come up University or down University Avenue and the track there was plugged because of the depth of the snow s , they had no alternative. This is the first year in twenty-seven ; years that that street was plowed near the bank where the cars par . I So the question is , is this off-street parking, public parking, ;; city parking - I don' t think anybody knows . But beside that point , I : I am asking for this variance because I plan to retire in about is !. three (3) years and the rising cost of everything that has to be done to maintain a house properly, I just can' t handle it with my ' '' social security going to end up around $350 . 00 a month and maintain l`; this house . That' s about the main reason. si 1 i ,, CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Could you outline for us the additional number oi� '+ tenants that this addition - that this conversion of the attic is I ; likely to make possible? ;i !(MR. JOHN: This conversion of the attic will add, I hope , two per- ,! sons. i I ;; CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Two persons a two bedrooms would be in the - one 'l irental unit up there? IIMR. JOHN: That' s right . Two bedrooms , may two boys or a married icouple . ►c � j - 10 - ;, CHAIRMAN MARTIN: How many other units do you have in the property including the one that you live in? SMR. JOHN: Four . CHAIRMAN ARTIN: Four . I MR. JOHN: And there is a total of six people , in those four apart- ments , and it has been that way since I have lived there . I might 11add that when I bought the house there were rooms in the attic . ;' They were rented as rooms and I abandoned them because I thought lat that time four apartments with me living there would be suffi- cient to live on and maintain my house properly. But due to the ! rising cost, and you know what it is , that I just can' t - I won' t i Abe able to handle it . It' s just cut and dried, and I ' d like to st �jthere a few more years. 'I CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Alright now, you and the other people who live i jthe property at present , you say park across the street? IIMR. JOHN: Right . 11CHAIRMAN MARTIN: There is no off-street parking on the property itself? �7. JOHN: No there is not. I might add that within the next 100 :yards up the hill from right across my house there is 100 yards f i, 1parked another ten cars that' s vacant it ' s been vacant for years . �eCHAIRMAN MARTIN: That ' s on-street? Along the side of the street? �MR. JOHN: That' s on the street and its available. It' s empty right ;now. Now at this time I 'd like to show you my home - the front yard 111ast winter. It will give you an idea of what condition I try to ;keep my home in. I could pass this around. Now I have to add a i. ('fire escape to this piece of property. It will go in the back yard l ( where I already have an existing fire escape. I' have to add one 1;landing . (CHAIRMAN MARTIN: That ' s in order to put the bedrooms in the attic? ii You would have to add this fire escape? !SMR. JOHN: Yes . That would give me two means of egress , right. ;(CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Are there questions from members of the Board? I I� li ij I - 11 - j I; ; MR. WILCOX: How far are you from the vacant lot where Cornell Aore down the big brick place? jMR. JOHN: I am two houses - just two houses. it 'MR. WILCOX: Is that open - do they use that for parking? iE !MR. JOHN: Cornell University has - they have given the Ithaca Gun ('ICompany permission to use that but I see a few cars in there - I I !jdon' t know where they are from - I think the apartment houses that ;;are right next to it on Lake Street might use it. i MR. GAINEY: There 's no strict enforcement - on the parking? ii MR. HOARD: Are the four units you mentioned in addition to your own? ii 11MR. JOHN: Yes. 1I {;MR. HOARD: So there are five? IMR. JOHN: Five , right . !;CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Yours , plus four others and this would then make ;a fifth plus yours? 'e I !MR. JOHN: That ' s right sir. ,CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Anything that' s unclear? Thank you Mr. John. Is Ii Hthere anyone else here who would like to be heard on this case? ! i� I iWe will move on then to the next . ii ,I l � f� If I !!i 1' i fp! li I ,f it ii i� I� i� II ij �I i f� i - 12 - BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS CITY OF ITHACA MAY 1 , 1978 ii EXECUTIVE SESSION 4 i i` APPEAL NO. 1200 : i MR. WILCOX: I move that the area variance reaueste in appeal 1200 be denied. { CHAIRMAN MARTIN: I second the motion. I I ' FINDINGS OF FACT : 1. This Board agrees with the Department ! of Planning & Development staff recom- mendation that lack of parking is such that if this is allowed to happen in this one property that there would be �I fother property owners who would expect j� to be able to do the same and that could j really be a serious problem. 2. That while the appellant testified to i personal economic hardship and while he `I evidently takes good care of his build- ing, these are not facts which the Boar ff� can take into account in granting or i ii denying an area variance . 11VOTE: 5 Yes ; 0 No . Area variance denied. i IE :1 ii i! ii it le � li I 'I - 13 - �i 1SECRETARY HOARD announced the next appeal to be heard: ; APPEAL NO. 1201 Appeal of Albert D. Kelly for an area i� variance under Section 30 . 25 , Columns 4, 12 and 13 (off-street parking re- quirements , and minimum side yards) , to construct a dwelling unit over the j restaurant at 319 Taughannock Boulevard 'i (Kelly' s Dockside Cafe) . The property located in an M-1 (Marine) use district , is deficient in both side yards and has no off-street parking. 1f ALBERT KELLY: My name is Albert D. Kelly. I own and operate Kelly ' s ;; Dockside Cafe. I want to build an apartment over top of my restau- rant for me to live in. I feel like I have plenty of parking and have plenty of pictures to show it and it' s off-street and on-street . CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Mr. Kelly, I 'm just curious . You were here re- jcently and the Board granted you an area variance. Is this an idea ' you've had since then or is this simply another stage of the 1initial plan? {MR. KELLY: No this I started building the new addition, right? 'I !IAnd while I was building the addition I got broke into again. My drestaurant has been broken into six times in one year. So I said, jyou know, the hell with this . I ' ll stop right here and try to get la - put an apartment in upstairs. So I went up to the Building De- j� partment and asked if I could put in an apartment? Andy they said well you should have asked for that in the first place when I went i for the new addition. My apartment is going to go directly over I i' ( top of the whole building - it' s not taking any more side yards or (' anything else. So they said that I was going to have to get a invariance. So I 'm here to apply for a variance. fICHAIRMAN MARTIN: Okay, so that - I mean, it is something that i occurred to you since you were here before? SMR. KELLY: Since then, right . CHAIRMAN MARTIN: It ' s a new idea and it was prompted by the break !! in that you experienced? MR. KELLY: By the break ins . Last time did it . li! CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Okay. And to orient it in terms of the building ;las it is now, it will simply go right up on top of the existing '' i ,I 14 - Is jbuilding , plus the addition, right? MR. KELLY: Right. ! CHAIRMAN MARTIN: So it will sit right on top of the expanded ;i ,11restaurant . ?SMR. KELLY: Right. Would you like to see any pictures or anything . it ;( CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Sure . Are you able to leave these with us? ff 1IMR. KELLY: Yes , you can have these . iJCHAIRMAN MARTIN: Okay, so we will will you mark these 1 through ) 1whatever number - it might be simpler just to put the case number I ikon them. i IMR. KELLY: Alright, this is where I started the addition - I �I 11stopped. This is the back of the place (pointing to a picture) . See, I 'm taking the building and going straight up and it goes along �I 11side of Hannan' s building on this side. This is the back view - it ' ll cover this - it ' s a 28 x 40 addition and it will rise up over Jtop of all of this so it ' ll hide this building on my side. This is lilHannan' s building and this is all the parking. I can park over I� 500 cars easy here . And it' s - you know we're across from the Farmers Market so I don' t think parking is any problem at all . I ' !building the apartment directly over top . This is my outside part i. fof the back (showing another picture) . + CHAIRMAN MARTIN: I think we' ll have a couple of questions . Mr. Kelly, how many bedrooms in the apartment? 1MR. KELLY: It' s going to be a three-bedroom apartment for me and Ii limy two boys . li I' ( CHAIRMAN MARTIN: I mean - you' ll live in it yourself? I :a !,MR. KELLY: Yes , I will live there. !, CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Okay. In one of the pictures you have shows the 1Iiparking which is across the street. it 'IMR. KELLY: Across the street , yes . I� CHAIRMAN MARTIN: That' s not parking that you have any claim on but �I f' it ' s just there . !MR. KELLY: It' s just there . I think it used to be the old railroad i' !jdepot - used to be there it ' s right across from the Station i I IM !9 it ;; Restaurant and the Farmers Market uses it now. !; CHAIRMAN MARTIN: When the Farmers Market is really in swing, does !i !; that fill up all the parking there or is there still plenty of 'I parking? IMR. KELLY: No . There is plenty of parking. There is over 500 li Ecar parking lot there . ! CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Questions from members of the Board? i ;SDR. GREENBERG : You are going to have an external stairway probably? 'l MR. KELLY: For me , yes , in the back. It' s only going to be like 1118 ' off the ground from the window so there is no problem - fire r` ;, extension or anything. !EMR. HOARD: What' s going to happen when you put 96 through there? MR. KELLY: Well I hope they do . Remember what Bud said. SMR. WILCOX: How high is it going to be? How much higher? 11 EMR. KELLY: It ' s going to be 8 ' on top of this (pointing to the plans) . This meets the requirements of the city for 9 ' ceilings iplus a couple of feet. This is going to go 8 ' on top of that . 11MR. GAINEY: It will be higher than this existing building? ! MR. WILCOX: Is it going to be higher than this? IMR. KELLY: It won' t be higher than Hannan' s building, okay? ,I 'dAlright, even with a roof on it it still won' t be higher . This is � ;! all coming off and it will be 8 ' up there. If MR. GAINEY: It ' s not going to change . . . !i MR. KELLY: It' s going to beautify the area . It' s not going to ihurt it . i MR. WILCOX: Nobody complained about it from across the inlet? i i ' MR. KELLY: No they Y haven' t . i' ! MR. GAINEY: Is the front going to be a conforming to the existing ! structure as far as the front is concerned? �i ' MR. KELLY: Right. !i ;; CHAIRMAN MARTIN: You also were concerned about complaints from thi I people from across the way and you asked about that. You (Mr . Kelly) said you hadn' t heard anything from the people you sent 11notices out to? it I I it i 16 - ;SMR. KELLY: Bud has never complained. He is all for it because iti ;;!� makes his property more valuable too, so • • anything I do helps him. !SMR. WILCOX: In the event he moves out and puts a second story to !This restaurant , there ' s - it ' s zoned for that? i1MR. HOARD: It' s permitted in the zoning . :IMR. WILCOX: Parking and everything? „ HMR. HOARD: Well , wait a minute. �IMR. GAINEY: We're granting an appeal right , just on a living quarters , not on a restaurant. j CHAIRMAN MARTIN: We're not granting a variance for a restaurant, j !! no. MR. GAINEY: So if someone wanted to put a second story restaurant i j on, they would have to come back? !IMR. HOARD: Yes . It would be deficient in parking. I I !! CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Further questions? Thank you Mr. Kelly. Anyone ; else with testimony relevant to this case? We will move on to the next . i� i, j I I i I E I I !j ii i' i I ii i it - 17 - 1 i ii BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS CITY OF ITHACA MAY 13, 1978 i !f EXECUTIVE SESSION ! APPEAL NO. 1201 : li CHAIRMAN MARTIN: I move that the area variance requested I, in 1201 be granted on condition that j plans for the addition be prepared by an architect and show architectural i i compatibility - front and back - be- tween the second floor addition and the I. restaurant on the first floor. ii 'MRS. MAXWELL : I second the motion. !IFINDINGS OF FACT : 1 . The proposed addition does not extend f! out any further in terms of side or front l dimensions than the restaurant on the li first floor and it is not as high as i ii '! the property immediately to the north. �i it 2 . In the prior case involving this proper- ty the Board considered the availability of off-street parking across the street . i This proposed apartment unit represents ji ii a very minor additional need for off- street parking compared to the restaura t addition approved in the earlier case . i �JIVOTE : S Yes ; 0 No . f Area variance granted w/condition. if i 'v I iI !� I i I i f� f i 18 - '� f SECRETARY HOARD announced the next appeal to be heard : i '! APPEAL NO. 1202 : Appeal of Richard Holgate for an area i, variance under Section 30 . 25 , Columns ' 4 , 6, 10 and 14 (off-street parking re-� quirements , minimum lot size , maximum lot coverage, and rear yard depth) , to erect a greenhouse on the triangular c r- ner lots at 912-914 West State Street , in a B-4 (business) use district. Con- struction of the greenhouse will resul in deficiencies in required lot dimen- sions and off-street parking. °1MR. FURMAN: My name is Jeff Furman, I live at 220 Utica Street . i have some diagrams of our proposal , I guess I could pass these around what we want to do is construct a greenhouse on the ii 1west side of the existing building approximately 20 ' by 101 . This H isn' t going to be used for any commercial purposes , we are not goi g 'i + to sell any agricultural products out of it, or flowers, or anything. 11Mr. Holgate is in the business of selling green houses and we want ) Ito use this as an example of the type of greenhouse that can be pu - ; chased. It is going to be in operation - he has contacted the Men' s ii Garden Club and some other civic organizations to use it . That to , essentially right now, is in pretty poor shape and this is the be- ginning - I want to put on the greenhouse and maybe eventually fixe jup that whole lot but we are here just now for the variance on thef 's ; green house, and it' ll take approximately 200 square feet - that 's i ; going to make a very small difference in the size of that lot. T ( There ' s approximately 1630 square feet in that triangular shape and' 1+ it provides - there is ample parking for off-street parking here and there is ample on-street parking also in front of his building. = Essentially that' s the reasons for our request. ;! MR. GAINEY: There was at one time a building already there wasn' t ;; there? i MR. FURMAN: Right, to the best of my knowledge. Before I was here . ' CHAIRMAN MARTIN: You said you were here just asking about the ,I Igreenhouse now but you allude to some future plans to clean up or 'Ido something with the whole triangle. j I 'i - 19 - jMR. FURMAN: Well , not only for the building, essentially we want ii is to keep that as parking. It' s felt that he needs parking for the retail establishment that' s already there , the Stove Pipe , so we I are not interested in that . . . f CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Alright, so there aren' t plans for additional expansion into that triangle? I� I� MR. FURMAN: No , true, no . i� CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Is that area used for parking at the moment? j MR. FURMAN: The total triangle area is , yes . if I li CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Are there any questions? MR. GAINEY: There' s no existing sign here now is there? ii MR. FURMAN: No. ! MR. GAINEY: Aren' t you planning to put a sign there? ;i MR. FURMAN: Yes , from what I understand there is no problem with j that, in terms of . . . iiCHAIRMAN MARTIN: There ' s no request for a sign ordinance variance) !!I in what we have before us? MR. FURMAN: No. II CHAIRMAN MARTIN: So the sign isn' t part of what is at issue before +i us , it' s just the green house? MR. FURMAN: Right. u to CHAIRMAN MARTIN: No further questions . I MR. FURMAN: Thank you. CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Is there anyone else with testimony on case 1202? !I The placing of the greenhouse on the property at 910 W. State Stre t? Il Our next case. �i 1 f, i I Ii i' i ! 'f i - 20 - ii I BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS I CITY OF ITHACA {� MAY 1 , 1978 I EXECUTIVE SESSION it :i i APPEAL NO. 1202 : it CHAIRMAN MARTIN: I will move that the area variance re- quested in case 1202 be granted. i. MR. GAINEY: I second the motion. j FINDINGS OF FACT: 1) The property in question is of an unusual shape and the proposed structu e will take up one-quarter of the area i currently available for off-street jparking, leaving enough to meet the I) likely demands of the business . I ,i 2) The green house isn' t likely to 9 generate significant additional traffi I I ;f to the location. I1 !� VOTE : 5 Yes ; 0 NO. 'I I Area variance granted. , !I I �I i �j 'I �I {{ I 'i it I I� { i` !I i it it i i i{ i I ii i i I 'I i i - 21 - SECRETARY HOARD announced the next appeal to be heard. APPEAL NO. 1203: Appeal of Ithaca Laundries , Inc . for a use variance to permit conversion of t e wash and dry cleaning establishment at 204 W. Seneca Street to a convenience jgrocery store and delicatessen. The property is located in an R-3a (resi- dential) use district, where delicatessen :i are not permitted, and only neighborho d it convenience groceries are permitted, under special permit . !i APPEAL NO. 5-1- 78 : Appeal of Ithaca Laundries , Inc. for a I' variance under Section 34. 5 of the Sig ii Ordinance to replace the existing sign on the building at 204 West Seneca Street with two new signs with a total square footage of less than 45 square feet. The property is located in a R-3a (residential) use district , where i such commercial signs are not permitted . 1 = MANLEY THALER: Do you want to take the two cases together? 1 I� CHAIRMAN MARTIN: We might as well take the two together , but why 1i don' t you sort of knock them off in two by three . i MANLEY THALER: My name is Manley Thaler , Ism counsel for Ithaca li Laundries . Most people are familiar with this location. I think i it is across the street from the Amoco Station and it ' s been operated as a laundry and dry cleaning pick up building since the early 19501s. To the east is a Mobil Gas Station, as I said, across the street is the Amoco Station and to the west is a Gulf ,j {� Oil Station - I think you people considered some time ago when i i s �i they remodeled that corner. The intent here on behalf of Mr . i it Smith, who sits in the audience , is to change the use from a j f laundramat and dry cleaning establishment , to a convenience food i, 1 store. The word delicatessen I think was inappropriate in that iti �i described the - it' s not an on-premises eatery. A delicatessen it being cold meats , packaged goods that you can pick up and take aw with you. It' s not the intent to run a restaurant. The reason r (� that we are here is that , I think there was an error when the zoning ordinance was redone and it was overlooked that this was f a commercial area and has been for twenty some odd years and we've 1 got to come here and askou for y permission to change the use . I� i i} i i i - 22 - i j There is off-street parking there. There is not to be an exten- sion of the building. I think the building, from what Mr. Smith tells me, that he is going to clean it up and paint it and one of the things that we 've got to do is change the signing and that' s Uhy we 've applied here for two new signs with a total square footage of less than forty-five (.45) square feet. So you can see we are of putting up flashing signs and we ' re trying to live within the nei h- i' borhood, and that' s basically what we intend to do . i CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Alright, I have two questions, first relates to I! I the unfortunate Gulf property that you mentioned. We neglected EI s� to ask in that case what the new thing was going to look like . What color it was going to be . 11 MR. THALER: What do you mean, orange and pink or green and yello. ? CHAIRMAN MARTIN: That' s right. We saw diagrams that showed no I significant expansion in scope and . . . i, MR. THALER: Can you tell us , Mr. Smith, what color you are going I 11 to paint the building? If you know now? MR. SMITH: Yes. The intention right now is the outside of the !� building will be painted white and what color my business has to j� lend will come from the inside and not from the outside . If that II answers that question. I i CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Alright. My second question, concerns the general level of trade that you expect. Would you, just in terms ' of guesstimate for us , relate it to the existing business , that is , !I will you expect more people to be coming or fewer than come to th +� Laundramat & Dry Cleaning Establishment to a convenience food I I market? f, MR. SMITH: I don' t have any idea what the number was there beford it I have no idea, you know, what type of volume it was doing there ii before. I would guestimate and it will end up true that there will be more people visiting there but my intention is , I 'm a con i I venient grocery store , you know, people will be coming there for 'j their convenient needs. The average stop there will be somewhat f I� I I !i ii i - 23 - i! under three or four minutes , so such as I will be turning over ii people in the parking spaces. The people that were there for their " laundry were probably there for an average of forty-five minutes to an hour and one-half. My customers will only be there for less i !" than ten minutes . !� MR. GAINEY: Your intent is right now, to take everything out of the inside as far as . . . ! ?E MR. SMITH: Everything is out of the inside . !i MR. GAINEY: There will be no laundramat or anything of this nature? 1 !i MR. SMITH: No. The equipment will be added and the walls will be !� replaced with new walls and painted. It will look really good when it gets done . . . CHAIRMAN MARTIN: And how much off-street parking will there end up being? MR. SMITH: There is between nine and ten parking places there , i is depending on how they angle in and to make a living there I have s j, to turn those spaces over so my intent is that to service the ! people , to cover their convenience needs , this stop will be short ! so I will be turning over an awful lot of cars in those ten spaces in the course of an hour or in the course of a day and I I " �I feel that it will be more than adequate . i 1 CHAIRMAN MARTIN: How will your deliveries come in? � MR. SMITH: Probably the main access for delivery will be on the i ( Albany Street side, but also will be through the front door. The mornings will be my slowest time of business and I will try to allocate or set up for my deliveries to be done that time of day. I iI CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Okay. Are there other questions? I DR. GREENBERG: The only thing I , living in the area, wonder about is backing p into that Seneca Street which is the tuning fork � '1 and one of the hazards in . MR. SMITH: To answer that question, I 've been in and out of therel t probably 100 times in the last five months to make the decision to i i" ii i i i� I 24 - ' go on this endeavor and the neighborhood will probably mainly - llbusiness people downtown have been using that for free parking space !; for - since the laundramat went out so there is almost constantly w !! cars in there. There is more than adequate room to back out of llthere and still have room to pull and pull out - straight out on j} West Seneca Street and/or Albany Street so there won' t be any nec- essity to back into West Seneca Street, into the traffic there. IMRS. MAXWELL: What hours do you plan to be open? i MR. SMITH: My intention right now is to be open from 7 : 00 A.M. 'i ; until midnight , seven (7) days a week. II GAINEY: Do you know what the existing hours of the laundramat � ii were? 1 ',i MR. SMITH: From 6 : 00 to 10 : 00, is that correct Mr . VanLent? ' MR. VAN LENT: I didn' t hear the question. HiMR. SMITH: The hours that the laundramat was open? There is a sign !fright on the door. I think it was from 6 to 10 or 7 to 10 . !i MR. VAN LENT : No . It was from 8 : 00 in the morning until 6 : 00 or ii 1; 7 : 00 at night. l iMR. GAINEY: You actually locked up at 6 or 7 at night? i i IMR. VAN LENT: No I didn' t. I just rented it. I didn' t run it . I; j ! did run it way back in the 50 's and 60 ' s and then Mr . Ferenti ran it and since then he put in coin machines so people really could 1come in until midnight I suppose. !MR. GAINEY: That ' s what I was curious about . There is really no change in the time periods . i MR. SMITH: The extent of my hours is mainly to service that neigh-' 'If jlborhood of which I am a part of. II !, CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Then you' ll be open all day? 1 I '!MR. SMITH: Yes. I I !iCHAIRMAN MARTIN: Turning to the sign piece of the cake , the 45 ,i !!square feet of the two signs will be where? j MR. SMITH: I believe you have a diagram of that - in the folder , it ;!there should be. I have one if you . . . . �i RI - 25 - i ' CHAIRMAN MARTIN: I believe I 'm right in saying that would fall r within what you would be permitted if this were zoned commercial . J MR. SMITH: If this were zoned commercial , my understanding from ;, talking with Edison Jones is that I would be allowed 105 square ' foot - or, wait , I would be allowed a foot and one-half of sign - ;; square foot of sign per linear foot of the building which would be i. x105 square feet. I 'm asking for 45 square feet and both of the sins , ;lone sign will be attached right to the roof of the building hangin i 11 ;; below the roof line and the other one will be attached to a 6 to 8' 71 jpole on the at the corner of the building which will be I think it is 14 or 15 feet away from the right--of-way, back from the righ lof way, so they both conform, to my understanding. 11, MR. HOARD : You have a copy of the . . . . ? I 1 MR. SMITH: I have one with me , yes . ! MR. HOARD: There doesn' t seem to be one in here. 1 MR. SMITH: There is two copies if you want them. That both shows 'i ; the size of the signs and actually to scale how they appear on the i building. 11CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Right and this is substantially less sign than is� jjon the building now? IMR. SMITH: Presently there is approximately 140 square foot of E jsigns . I shouldn' t say that , they did - Mr . VanLent has taken down , one sign that was on the corner there. It has already been taken ' down but there was when this business was operating , approximately 1140 square foot of signs which will all be removed. ;' CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Will the signs be illuminated? ;! MR. SMITH: Yes . f ( CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Will they wiggle or turn? ,' MR. SMITH: No , its high output lamps but it will be constant ligh . i; ;; CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Any further questions? Guess not. ii '1MR. SMITH: Could I have one of those copies back? 11MR. WILCOX: Are these high output lamps a real bright light? IMR. SMITH: Well they are - I don' t understand I really don' t know I i i i i ! - 26 - �� 1 ` what you mean by bright? '; CHAIRMAN MARTIN: He doesn' t understand what you mean by high ; output. ii 3€ MR. WILCOX: Well it says here, eternally lit with high output lam S . i� SII wonder how high the output is? Light up the neighborhood or . . . ' i i; '•:JMR. SMITH: No. Well my understanding is it will just illuminate i ;tithe sign -it ' s not there to light up any part of the grounds . HMR. THALER: There is a sign face under the light bulbs . That' s i. '1what you have to understand. 1MR. SMITH: Yes . ! MR. THALER: There is a plastic facing - the light bulbs are i ,Ibehind . . . '1CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Behind the sign? �i !1MR. SMITH: Yes . Yes . ! (!CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Okay. i (EMR. THALER: No Las Vegas lighting. I !CHAIRMAN MARTIN: Any further questions? Thank you Mr . Smith. Is !i ! ,, there anyone else here tonight who would like to be heard on this ;!case, either concerning the use of the property or the requested Ensign ordinance variance? I believe then that concludes the public f !hearing and we are ready to go into executive session. That means i !ethat we will have to ask you to leave . Those of you who want to ; stay to hear the results , we will invite back in at the conclusion i ; of our deliberation. i! it i I' lily Ef i� �-i �i �I s.i j I! - 27 - I I i II I BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS CITY OF ITHACA ii MAY 1 , 1978 EXECUTIVE SESSION �i I 1 APPEAL NO. 1203 : MR. GAINEY: I move that this use variance be granted on the basis that the appel- lant is not changing the exterior of i; the building, only the interior . i, MR. WILCOX: I second the motion. I i FINDINGS OF FACT : 1) It will be used only as a grocery store with a deli . Also the build- ing is conforming to the area. That block of Seneca Street is all businesses 2) The property in question cannot rea- sonably be used for a use that con- forms with the R-3 requirements . A i 3) There is adequate off-street parking VOTE : 5 Yes ; 0 No . it Use variance granted. I i� , I� �I I ;I I l I it ;I ,k ii o� - 28 - i BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS CITY OF ITHACA MAY 1 , 1978 ' EXECUTIVE SESSION I' ;i APPEAL NO. 5-1-78 CHAIRMAN MARTIN: I will move that the sign ordinance i variance requested in appeal 5-1-78 i be granted on the condition that the variance run until 8/31/79 at which point the sign on this property would d jhave to meet whatever requirements a e imposed on similar commercial proper j' ties in the residential zone on West i! Seneca Street. !, MRS. MAXWELL: I second the motion. l VOTE 5 Yes ; 0 No . j i� i; Variance granted with condition. i �INDINGS OF FACT: 1) The requested signs are well within the limit permitted if the property were zoned for commercial use and ar I substantially less than the area of the signs that they replace . ii 2) They are not out of line with the { !i signs on nearby commercial propertied j on W. Seneca Street. �I I� I� i' I I� ! �t i Ij it 1 ! i i� IE i1 29 - il I, IE I , Barbara Ruane, Do Certify that I took the minutes of the Board of Zoning Appeals, City of Ithaca , in the matters of Appeals 'i numbered 1197 , 1199 , 1200 , 1201 , 1202 , 1203 and 5-1-78 at City HaL , itCity of Ithaca, New York; that I have transcribed same , and the j foregoing is a true copy of the transcript of the minutes of the i meeting and the Executive Session of the Board of Zoning Appeals , ii ii City of Ithaca, on the above date , and the whole thereof to the I i best of my ability. i I i E 4-2 GL- Barbara C . Ruane Recording Secretary .i I ,I 1i i' I (E I i i (i it i) Sworn to before me this �I day of , 1978 . ii i! ii j No ry Publi.c I j JOSEPH A. RUNDLE Notary Public, State of New York i No. 55-4507134 ; Qualified in Tompkins Count Term Expires March 30, 19 � �i II I° 'i i. is i i! I ;e jf i! ( i i i 30 - ii board of zoning appeals City of Ithaca May 1 , 1978 'i fl EXECUTIVE SESSION it APPEAL NO. 1172 (_whether to rehear) iy CHAIRMAN MARTIN: I move that in connection with Case I 1172 the Board grant the opportunity Ijf at its next meeting to Mr. Ceracche j or his representative and any other neighboring property owners which �f i �i might have presented material at our 10/3/77 hearing had they known that the Board might grant an area vari- ance permitting a new addition right up against the property at 334 W. i State Street. The Board' s hearing � i it shall be limited to such additional ;i I testimony which will permit the Boar i, f to decide whether it wishes to re- i consider the decision reached at that October 1977 meeting. ` DR. GREENBERG: I second the motion. VOTE : 5 Yes ; 0 No. if i i �f f I I I ii i �I ,f i i i