HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-BZA-1970-10-05 BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS, CITY OF ITHACA, CITY HALL, ITHACA, NEW YORK
OCTOBER 5, 1970
APPEALS NOS. 895 & 896
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PRESENT: JOHN BENTKOWSKI, Chairmen
RALPH P. BALDINI
BEVERLY MARTIN
ANTHONY PETIZTI
JAMES ROGAN
EDISON JONES, Building Com:rd,asioner & Secretary
THE CHAIR Opens meeting.
DAVID B. GERSH: I am David Gersh, Attorney representing Cecil B.
Shulman in Case No. 896, scheduled for this evening,
and would respectfully request that this matter be
adjourned for one month.
THE CHAIR: Granted. We will continue with Case No. 895: the
Appeal of Bernard H. & Barbara P. Quick, 1564 Slaterville
Road, Ithaoa, Now York, for variance for use as Beauty
Shop at 407 Elmwood Avenue, under provision Section 79
Column 2, in an R-3 district.
DAVID B. GERSH: Members of the Board, my name is David Gersh, and I
appear here this evening with Barbara Quick, requesting
a variance to operate a beauty shop in an R-3 district.
A background word is that She is the owner of this shop.
Grace Quick began operating the Beauty Shop some 43 years
ago, and Barbara Quick succeeded in the business as owner
of the shop. This shop has built up a substantial and
loyal clientele, and then about a month ago the landlord
gave them about 60 days in which to vacate where they
were so they could rent to a discount record shop at a
higher rent. Mrs. Quick began shopping around for another
location in that area, and after a very thorough search,
could not find anything suitable for their operation,
either in size, terms of parking, or rent-rise. Finally
they found a house at 407 Elmwood Avenue in average condi.'
tion in an R-3 district.
Appellant's Exhibit 1 marked for identification
The area is dominated by fraternities, by rooming houses,
by apartment houses, all of which are permitted uses in
this R-3 district. Surrounding the Quick house, in
addition, are some professions near by, a doctor across
�.. and a piano enterprise down the street. Mrs. Quick could
MR. GERSH: lives there and operate her beauty .shop as a home occupa-
tion; to live in this house to do so would require her
to sell her home on the Slaterrrille Road and they would
much prefer to retain their present home and operate this
shop as a business. Mrs. Quick is as anxious to make
the Elmwood Avenue beauty shop a good neighbor as she
has been with the College Avenue beauty shop. This shop
has been in business a long time and has acquired a sub-
stantial clientele. It is not necessary to attract
people off the street. She is not-trying to lure new
customers. There will be nothing on the front of the
building to attract customers. There will just be a
small sign at the rear of the presses for customers to
come down the driveway and come around to the rear en-
trance to enter. They would park off the street, with
room for about five cars. There would be no parking on
Elmwood Avenue. Mrs. Quick plans to have two other girls
working with her and they would park on Elmwood Avenue
on meter parking. This house would not even be illumi-
nated by any sign. The hours of operation - 8:00 A.M.
to 6:00 P.M. six days a week, no evening hours, and
absolutely no annoyance, inconvenience or distractions to
neighbors, not even any noise. Most dryers require out-
side vents. Mrs. Quick has other means. There would be
no increase of traffic. This house could of course be
used as a rooming house and this could increase the
traffic problem considerably. The nature of the clientele
is a localized one. These people come from Cornell at
the lunch hour; they reside in the college area. If she
is unable to locate in this place she is going to have
to move to some other location and give up some of her
clientele. This is the principal source of income for
the family. She could get a job as a beautician but
the income derived would be less than half that as the
owner of a beauty shop. I submit because this is an R-3
districto there are multiple dwellings occupied primarily
by students. This would in no way change the character
of the neighborhood. I might say in closing that Mrs.
Quick has proven herself to be a fine neighbor and she
wants very much to continue to be a good neighbor on
• Elmwood Avenue.
DR. SALDINI: Is this just a beauty shop or would there be an apartment?
A. I will have five students on the second floor and the
beauty shop on the first floor.
MISS 1ART321: I take it that the five students would have been on the
second floor anyway. I am curious to know if five
students would have been there anyway, and in addition,
how many would these be on the first floor otherwise?
A. The Stambaughs are living there. It would be very
difficult to turn the first floor into a student house.
-3-
DR. BALDINI: Do you own the house now?
A. Yes, and five students are upstairs and no one is on the
first floor.
THE CHAIR.: Do you provide parking for the students?
A, None of them have oars.
MI33 MARTIN: Then the entrance to the beauty shop at the back is not
necessary to parking. Do the people on the second floor
have to go up that way?
A. That was one of the things I liked about the house. The
students could come in the front and my beauty shop en-
trance could be at the rear.
MISS MARTIN: What other facilities did you explore?
A. I looked for just everything to rent in that vicinity and
at all the houses for sale, and there are a lot on College
Avenue. This piece of property seemed the most desirable
for my needs.
DR. BUDINI: How far is this from where you were on College Avenue?
A. Two blooks. The other was 405 College Avenue.
THE CHAIR: Is there any one who wishes to speak in favor of this
application?
MRS. JOSEPH SYLVAN: I live directly across the street and I have no objection
whatsoever.
DR. SYLVAN: The property is directly across the street. We know the
wicks well and all our dealings with them have been
happy ones. If you look at their property on the Slater-
ville Road and see hoer their property is maintained, you
would be impressed. I can see no objection whatsoever to
what they want to do. I would like to say that I hope
they are granted the variance.
MRS. RICHARD FUGHT: One block away. We run a business iii our residence.
I have been a customer of Mrs. Quick for some time now.
Her shop is always clean, orderly, and I am pleased to go
there. There are several rooming houses immediately across
the street, The owners come once a month to collect rents
and the third one is owned by Casoadilla School. All
three properties are maintained adequately i but there has
been a drug arrest in one of these properties. This ap-
plioant would be in her house many hours a day and I know
she will maintain her property. The second property on
MELS. FLIGHT: Dryden Road is a disgrace, My boy is a paper boy and I
used to go with him to collect, and I was ashamed to go
in that house; it was so poorly lighted and it smells.
The fraternity at the corner of Elm9rood Avenue and Oak
has drinking parties. I know if Mrs. Quick is there this
kind of party will not go on. We have, been where we are
19 years and the beauty shop across from me on Bryant
Avenue is not objectionable at all to me, and it has a
lighted sign. I think Mrs. Quick would carry on a nice
business in our area,
ALLEN FELDT: Seventh Ward, I have had conversations with others on
this issue. I think the concern of all residents in the
area is whether this would add to the commercial purpose
of this area or-slow it down. I do not knout what the
answer is but it has been suggested that the introduction
of commercial in the area might tend to increase this
area in becoming oommsroial, whereas it has always been
residential or for students.
MRS, JAMES SMITH: Next door to where Mrs. Quick bought, oar house is on
the market to sell. and I shall be leaving but I per-
sonally am delighted tiro have somebody come in and fix up
and-improve the property, and as far as I am concerned,
I feel it w1i Ll. be an improvement.
a JOSEPH ILLES: I know Mrs. Quick and I don't think there is any issue
at all to make the problem out of it, to open up a
business there,
MARYANNE GARRE`N: 405 Dryden Road. I own property there. I an very much
in agreement as I am very ooncerned about these rooming
houses that do not have landlords in them and I am sure
Mrs. Quick would be there to maintain hers and know what
is going on.
FRANCIS ELAN: I own next to where she was; we were neighbors for 26
years. She ran a good business, clean. I don't see arw
reason why this variance should not be granted to Mrs.
Quick.
JIM RYDER: I own 114 Summit Avenue,, almost directly across. I have
no objection; as a matter of fact, I would welcome it.
DOC'T'OR ORCUTT: Doctor Sylvan's assistant. I have known the Quioks for a
long time and they seem to be fine people and I think
this would be a credit to the area,, for Mrs. Quick to move
into the area and maintain a beauty shop there.
THE CHAIR: Is there any one who wishes to speak in opposition
to the appeal?
KENNETH EVETT: 402 Oak Avenue. I am opposed because I feel zoning laws
are to protect certain regions and to protect these
regions from commercial activity. This would be a
commercialized enterprise and I think it would open the
door on further encroachments on the residential oharac-
ter of the neighborhood. I think it would open up this
area which is residential. I feel that there is a dis-
tinction between houses that are lived in and houses
that maintain a commercial project.
MRS. HERBERT WILLIAMS 390 Oak Avenue
I second everything Professor Evett has said; that the
reason we have difficulties in getting people to come
into Ithaca proper is that we have this granting of the
Zoning laws. I like Mrs. Quick but this is an entrance
to commercial activities.
MARY JOHNSON: Homestead Terrace. Also I think highly of Mrs. Quick
but the problem with the Zoning is that once you have
granted a variance is not what Mrs. Quick would do with
it, but what would happen after she is there. Already
it is opened up then and almost anybody can move in.
There is the open door.
FLORRI+ICE HOARD: Cornell Street. I back Mrs. Quick but we would like
to see more private homes and with the University's
traffic situation, the East Hill area is becoming more
'desirable for the faculty. People say they would like
to buy there but they feel the Zoning is so lax. This
is my plea. I am a City resident and have been inter-
ested in this for a long time. I think we should all
be allowed to speak because it is a general problem.
VIRGINIA BEM: Bryant Avenue. I can not add anything more except to
say that I am against this whole thing because of aW
property being there.
-6-
MR. GERSH reads the following:
"To Whom It May Concern:
We own property at 321 Dryden Road and also at 410
Dryden Road. We have absolutely no objection to the Quick Beauty Shop
opening at 407 Mmood Avenue.
We live on the corner of Green and Albany Streets and
for over 15 years have had beauty shops across from us, both on Albany Street
• and Green Street. We have never found them to be offensive or detrimental
to our property in any way.
John and Rita Bangs
10-5-70 "
"TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
In reference to the application of the Grace Quick Beauty Salam to
locate at the premises of 407 M m mod Avenue: I do certainly approve of
said application and location, whereas, the presence of said Business should
upgrade the area, due to the fact that recent carelessness and neglect of
property in the immediate locale has been noticeably distasteful. In regard
to added parking problems, I would much rather see a few more oars using the
space, which is limited, by customers coming and going, rather than many
students who leave their vehicles in the area all day long, which I assure
you, is a fact rather than opinion.
Martin A. Hancharik
405-W-449 Dryden Road"
-7-
The following read by Professor Evetts
"To Whom it may Concern,
Mr. and Airs. Walter Schanz% who own property at 404 and 486 Oak Ave.
wish to protest the operation of a Beauty Salon by Barbara Quick on Mmmood
Ave. It would seem that once a variance is permitted there are usually
further requests. We have lived on this beautiful, quiet street for nearly
38 years. A beauty parlor in itselfs might not be so bad - but when would
some noisier establishment open up in the area, ones this thing has started.
Please consider the consequences of allowing such a business in the area.
Walter and Leah Sohame"
The following read by Mr. Bentkowski:
"Chairman of the Board of Zoning Appeals
Ithaca, N. Y.
Dear Sirs
As a long time resident and property owner of Dryden Rd.
I strongly urge that there not be any variance granted regarding the present
residential ssoning law.
I have seen this street deteriorate from a good reoiden-
tial section to a praotiaally tenement type and if a precedent is established
by *hanging the prevent a fisting law I fear that upper Dryden Rd. will
eventually be like the section from Unden Ave. to Eder St. - a slum.
I hope that this fully expresses the feelings of a
taxpayer who is desperately trying to improve the neighborhood.
Sincerely,
Isabel Larkin
315 en Rd.
Oct. 3rd, 170
EXECCU TIME MWIOK9 BOARD OF ZONING APPX&Wq CITY OF ITHACAj OCTOBER 59 1970
CAREE NO. 895:
PET ITTIs Move that the applioation for variance be granted with
the provision that this varianoe is granted only to the
appellants.
ROW
3"ond.
VOTE: Yes - 5 No -► 0
Appli*ation granted.
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