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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-BZA-1972-09-05 ii i BOARD OF ZONING APPEAL99 CITY OF ITHACA, CITY HALL, ITHWA, NEW YORK SEPTEMBER 59 1972 N-rrrrrrr--NMrrrr-rrr.rrrrMr-NM M M Mrr-r-rrr-rMrrr--rrrrr-r-�--rrr PRESENT: JAMES ROGAN, Chairman GEORGE HARPER i GREGORY KASPRZAK C. MURRAY VAN MARTER EDISON JONES, Building Commissioner & Secretary THE CHAIR Opens meeting, informing appellants that if they choose to return at a subsequent meeting, inasmuch as the granting of an appeal requires four affirmative votes and only four Board members being present and voting, that appellants have privilege to return. Appellants elect to proceed. Building Commissioner Jones lists numbers of cases to be heard, namely, No. 986 and No. 987 THE CHAIR: The first case tonight is the Appeal of M. W. Guidi Construction, Incorporated, for exception under Sectio 7, Column 7, at 604 Taylor Plaes in an R-1 zone. Who is appearing? MARIO GUIDI: I am Mario Guidi from the Guidi Construction Company, i but actually I am representing Mr. Raoul Sudre, who is out of the country. I think he is in Yknich and I hope he is okay. I might have to be led by you, the members of the Hoard here, as to exactly what you need for this. We did apply for a permit to build, to put in an apartment in the basement, a level residmoe at 604 Taylor Place. I just came back to town myself after two weeks away, but as I understand, the building permit was applied for and refused because of insuffici- ent lot size. Now, at the request of Mr. Sudre, we have prepared cost estimates, some preliminary sketches for the apartment, which will occupy about fifty percent of the basement level of the house. Other than that I do not know what you need. I thought 10,000 feet were the requirements. I f I I MR. KASPRZAK: Could you tell us theratio of the footage rather than just fifty percent? MR. GUIDI: Maybe I oan get that for you real quick. My chief estimator had to attend a fire commissioners' meeting tonight. No --- I will need to look up some thing before I mm tell you the exact size. MR. KASPRZAK: Will you describe the proposed layout of the apartment MR. GUIDI: It's going to be a studio apartment. Part of the plumbing is in there. We want to add a built-in top, I� ceilings, and very minimal partitioning The living I quarters will be divided so that you will have a separate bathroom, and the living and bedroom areas will be taken care of in the same roan area. I think it is supposed to be a one-bedroom unit, MR. HARPER: The square footage of the house an it now - do you knot ? MR. GUIDI: Well, maybe I can look this up for you in a few minutes. MR. KASPRZAK: How about parking? MR. GUIDI: The garage is already located in the other fifty per- cent of the basement area, MR. KASPRZAK: A two-oar garage? A, Yes, Q, How many cars are going to be using it? A. I do not know - I assume one for the upstairs and another for the downstairs unit. There is space for two cars now. MR. HARPER: I think we need more information. MR. GUIDI: What do you need as concerns the square footage? MR. HARPER: Closeness to the property lines and so forth. f MR. JONES: The house is only three years old. MR. VAN MARTER: Are you familiar with the relative size of the lots in { that area? I` I I MR. GUIDI: Further up on Westwood Knolls but not immediately next to this house. When we applied for building permit we were rejected because the lot size was not large enough for another apartment in the house. Wasn't that sho n on the application? MR. JONES: Yes, the lot is large enough for a one-family zoning unit, and when the man came in for another apartmaht I advised him that the lot was not large erwnb with- out going for an exception to the Board of Zoning Appeals. MR, KASPRZAK: Do I understand that the plumbing is already in? . MR JONSS: Yes but what was intended for a one-family house , amity . MR. GUIDI: No, I did not mean when I mentioned plumbing, to imply it was already in for another apartment. MR. HARPER: Are there any other apartments in any of the other houses? MR. GUIDI: I do not know. THE CHAIR: The Hoard wants the square footage for the apartment and the basement. MR. GUIDI: As alone as I can come it is about 300 square feet for the apartment in the basement area, plus or minus. That is a two-story house there and the garage itself is at least 500 square feet. THE CHAIR: (Looking at plan): This plan shows 48 feet by 26 feet i MR. JONES: 12,048 square feet upstairs. THE CHAIR: Then you have 240000 square feet. MR. GUIDI: Then the basement is 129048 square feet. We are ialadmg about an apartment between 500 and 600 square feet is probably more accurate. As I understand it the lot is about 59000 square feet too small. 1 i MR, VAN MARTER: (Looking at plan): This is the plot plan of Westwood 'AnoUs Subdivision, approved by the Planning Board in November, 1969. It gives the areas of lots individually. I can see no other lot that has an area as small as this witbin the whole subdivision, in the order of about 4,000 square feet smaller than the other lots. I! iI ti I i I 1AR, GUIDI: We built two homes on Westwood Knoll and both of these homes were quite large. A C MR, VAN MARTER: The average might be slightly higher than that and the lot might be of unique quality, but it is not unique in the area of practical difficulties and special con- ditions. Do you want to look at your application form and see i you want to add anything to that, Mario? MR, GUIDI: Item 1, which is what we are saying, is that you can not buy adjoining properties, as far as I know. As yalt have mentioned already, the difficulties and condition are unique to this piece of property and not to the adjoining properties. This is the crux of the whole thing. Here is a lot situated on the corner. Ido no know whether Mr. Sudre las tried to purchase any ad- joining lot or not, but according to our notes, eviden ly it can not be had. I think you could say this lot is unique, with no way to make it larger. I assume that Mr. Sudre purchased this as an investment property, - let's say for a two-fasdly property. THE CHAIR: He does not live in this house? MR. GUIDI: No, THR CHAIR: Is there any one who wishes to speak in favor of this application? None. Is there any one who wishes to speak in opposition to this application? I �I �o I� R WALTER SWALA: VY name is Walter walk, 555 North Taylor Place. We have quite a group of people here. I think they are all in accord with opposing the application, for a number of reasons. First, one requirement is the lot size, and the other is road frontage. I think this is 100 feet road frontage - am I correct? MR. JONES: Yes, this shows a little more than the 100 feet. MR. EWALD: I see five lots in that section that do not conform to the sone requirement for an added dwelling. If you make an exception here, who is to prevent other people to apply? Second, we do not feel there is a hardship here. We like him but he does not intend to live there. It was pure speculation, and is right on the corner, witk i a steep incline and in winter if anybody parks in frort of that house, while it has a driveway, but with two families there, somebody is bound to park on the street. I almost hit a guy last winter there. If they park there, anybody coming down Hector street has just no way of stopping. i If there is an exoeption made on less than 159000 square feet, what is to prevent somebody there now, f with 150000 square feet and the required road frontage from applying for another apartment. They would now be entitled to one other apartment, and an applicatio f could mean three apartments. We feel not even a hard ship is applicable in this case. THE GHAIRs You can not have three units. MR. EWALD: Yes, but this particular lot is not supposed to have any more units. I AlI i I I i i JOHN WOOSTER: 255 Westwood Knoll. When we built our house about a year ago, we purchased 5 feet extra land so we could put an apartment in the basement under the existing rules. Well, if you have ever had to deal with a person who owns a house and knows you are going to argue over five feet, you know j what we went through, and therefore, since I did it, I feel we like the zoning as it was and complying wit the rules and I did not come and ask for an exception. Therefore, I think it should be denied. i VINCENT HAANNAN: 508 Campbell Avenue. I appear also in protest. I also bought in this location to take advantage of the R-1 zone. Sinoe • I moved there only about five years ago, I have seen Hector Street rapidly change to student apartments faster and faster, and it is now right at the corner where formerly it was a protected sone. Mr. Sudre has lived there and knows the situation. He bought it for speculation and bought it to turn it into an apartment house. I think he has not sham hardship, as well as not conforming with the zoning requirements which we expect the pity to uphold. HENRY MURPHY: 505 Campbell Avenue. I own the property right next door to this house and in the question of attempting to purchase additional land to extend the property, I probably would be the logical one to approach. I have not been. There is land between my house And the Sudre property. As I understand it, there are 109000 square feet in this property. this lot, and as the law reads 159000 square feet as a requirement to have an apartment in the house, this seems to me to be an exceptional request to make►, asking for a permit to build an apartment in a zone R-1, when the lot is 59000 square feet short of the requirement. I could see it if it were a few hundred feet because of the shape of the lot, but when (, it is 59000 square feet short, this seems an excep. tional request and I want to reiterate the grounds of objections of tb previous speakers and go on the recorl as opposed to this exception. �a. MARY MURPHY: Also 505 Campbell Avenue. I would like to point out that while you are being asked for permission for a little apartment, and in fact we have a family house that fits the zoning `requirement, granting this exception would permit this to become a commercial building of two apartments Already the flowers are going to rack and ruin and it looks now like a rental property. We experienced this very thing in Indiana - one exception in a residential area and within five years hada laundromat, a gas station, a motel and an apartment building as a buffer, I am not in favor of granting an exception. In addition, the following neighbors went on record as being opposed: Joyce Wilson, 216 Westwood boll Mrs. Lloyd Hull, Westwood Knoll Marilyn Wallaoe, 515 Campbell Avenue W. F. Alder, 542 Taylor Plaoe, and Wife Lillian Wooster; 255 Westwood Knoll Stuart Wilson Alice Swald Mary Hannan, also speaking for her son, who is a property owner in the neighborhood Mrs. Banek i i I �i �i I� i EXECUTIVE SESSION, BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS, CITY OF ITHACA, ITHACA, N. Y. APPEAL NO. 986 September g, 1972. -p-./-MSN----N---N-M--NN-----M-NMN N MR, HARPER: Mve that the application for exception be denied. MR. KASPRZAN: Second. • ( FRIDINGS OFFACCT: 1) There were strenuous neighborhood objections; 2) The requirements to show practical difficulties and special conditions was not met; 3) The difficulties of the application containing the additional duelling unit relate to the lot sise, as contained in the approved subdivision plan, rather than to the home itself. VOTE: Yes - 4 No - 0 Application denied. - i i i i I C �I l i° BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS, CITY OF ITHACA, CITY HALL, ITHACA, NEW YORK SEPTEMBER 5, 1972 APPEAL NO, 987 1 j PRESENT: JAMES ROGAN, Chairman GEORGE HARPER GREGORY KASPRZAK C. MURRAY VAN MARTER EDISON JONES, Building Commissioner & Secretary S i THE CHAIR: The second case tonight is No. 9879 the Appeal of John D. Bodine for an exception under Section 7, Column 79 at 909 North Tioga Street, in an R»3 sone. f I believe Mr. Bodine is here to speak. Appellant's Erldbit 1 marked for identification I JOHN BODINE: My name is John Bodine and my home is located at 909 North Tioga Street. My family consists of mfr wife and myself and two children. Our home is at the corner of King and Tioga Streets. We purchased this home two and a half years ago and found that I the foundation was deteriorating, and it became so bad this year that it started to pall off. We hired a building contractor to Jack up the house, remove the old foundation and replace the foundation. This has necessitated a great deal of plumbing and heating work, changing sewer lines, fixing approaches outside to make up for the increased height. I have applied for an exoeption to the Ordinance to r put a small efficiency apartment in the basement. This will in no way detract from the house and will increase the value of our home. And it will not detract from the residential nature of the neighborho d. We have a two-oar garage with additional parking for two cars off the street. It would not interfere with sidewalk traffic. MR. BODINE: The sine of the apartment would be approximately 350 square feet. I have a lay-out of the basement here for you to look at, which has been marked as an exhibit. We have sent the required letters and I have a list of the property owners within 200 feet of our lot as provided for. There are at least eight homes with ` apartments in them within one block of our hose on Tioga Street, and in fact tha two houses next to us have apartments in them. MR. HARPER: Is that going to face east or west? A. It will face north as King Street is to the north, and the windows will be on the ffing Street side. MR. KASPRZAK: With the entrance from the east? A. Right. That is the existing entrance to the home. There is a sidewalk there now. MR. HARPER: It is about fifty percent of lot size? A. It will be more because it will include the entrance way. MR. JONES: That is not a factor in an R-3 zone. MR. VAN MARTER: Has there always been just one living unit there? A. Yes. MR, KASPRZAK: How high is the floor of the main house area, the ground level? A. I an not sure but we have jacked it up to about 20 inches, but when we put the foundation in we will be dropping it about 5 feet. Q. You will have light? A. Oh, yes, theoe is plenty there now. The sills will be about 4 inches above ground level. I think the height will be about 40 inches. THE CHAIR: Thank you. There soma to be no one here either to = speak in favor or against this appeal. V� i i t r USCUTIVE SESSIONO BOARD OF UNING APPEALS9 CITY OF ITHACA9 ITHACA9 N. Y. APPEAL NO. 987 September 5, 1972. i t MR. KASPRZAK: Move to grant the application for exception to the Zoning Ordinance, MR. HARPER: second. FINDINLS OF ,FACT: 1) There is adequate off-street parking for the additional unit; 2) There is no change in percentage of lot coverage nor in dimensions of the building; 3) A two-family residence is permitted in an R-3 some; 4) The intent of the 'Zoning Ordinance is not affected. VOTE: Yes 4 No - C Application granted. I f II I i I CERTIFICATION J f I I, LILLIAN M. KEOWN, Notary Public, State of New York* DO CERTIFY that as such Notary Publio, I took the minutes of the Hoard of Zoning Appeals, City of Ithaca, in the matters of Appeal No. 986 and Appeal No. 987, on September 5, 1972 at City Hall! City of Ithaca, New York; that I have transcribed the same and the foregoing is a true i copy of the transcript of the minutes of the meeting and executive session i of the Board of Zoning Appeals, City of Ithaca, on the above date, and the whole thereof. Lillian M. Keown Notary Public, State of New York No. 55-7239950 Qualified in Tompkins County M4 Commission Expires Mar. 309 1974 I I� I l