Neighbors Oppose Request To Establish Apartment, Zoning Board Denies Request
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
Several neighbors represented by Don Wihebrink remonstrated against Patricia Gargett's request regarding the property at 1331 E. Main St.
Appearing before the Warsaw Board of Zoning Appeals Monday, Gargett said since the 1940s the second floor of the house was used as an apartment on and off, complete with separate address, plumbing and utility meters. The last rental was five years ago.
The house is for sale and Gargett maintained it would be more marketable with the establishment of a permanent apartment.
Marsha Anderson, a Premier Real Estate sales person, appeared in support of Gargett.
The minimum lot size required for a two-unit dwelling is 8,500 square feet. Gargett's property measures 7,392 square feet. Establishment of parking spaces for four vehicles - two for residents of the bottom floor, two for the top - would essentially take up the entire yard.
Wihebrink presented a petition signed by 22 neighbors against the apartment. He said the property isn't a few square feet of the minimum requirements, it's 1,100 square feet short. He also said there is no off-street parking available on Main Street.
Wihebrink said he wanted the neighborhood to be owner-occupied, not dotted with a bunch of rentals.
"There's an abandoned house behind the property, and one boarded up across the street," he said. "Keep the neighborhood nice, we like living in town."
He said Anderson sold him his house a few years ago, touting the single family ownership in the neighborhood.
The request was denied, based on the square footage of the property.
In other business the board:
• Approved a request by Bob Petro, owner of Petro's GM, for an off-premise sign.
The property, at 2777 N. Detroit St., was zoned as a planned unit development in 2000. Off-premise signs are prohibited in this zone. The variance is for a 200-square-feet sign which will be 36 feet tall. The sign is to identify future shopping opportunities to the rear of the car dealership and identify various businesses in the development as they are open to shoppers.
One of the signs on the Petro GM property will be removed as an accomodation of the new sign.
• Approved with modifications a request by Patrick Pfefferkorn, 112 N. Sherman St., to install a 6-foot-high wooden fence on three sides of his property.
The fence will go up against a neighbor's chain link fence. On the south side of the property, the fence is to be no more than 3 feet high, 10 feet off the sidewalk.
Because of an alley encroachment on the north side, the variance must be approved by the Warsaw Board of Works.
• Approved a request by Tina Minnix-Phipps, 223 West Winona Ave., for a 6-foot-high fence within the first 10 feet of both front property lines and a 3-foot-high fence encroaching into the Washington Street right-of-way.
Because of the encroachment, the variance must be approved by the Warsaw Board of Works.
• Approved a request by James and Linda Howard, 985 Country Club Lane, for a variance from developmental standards on an undeveloped lot, to have a 20-foot, 5-inch front yard setback and 10 foot, 6-inch combined side yard setback.
• Approved a request by Russell Wall, 940 E. Arthur St., for a variance to construct an attached garage 11-1/4 inches below the flood protection grade in a flood hazard area.
Wall's home was constructed without a flood elevation certificate required by the city building and planning department 18 months ago. The house's finished floor is 4 inches below the flood protection grade.
Darlene Holsclaw, owner of an undeveloped lot south of the Wall property, appeared before the board to protest the request.
A survey shows her property also has a finger of land going north about half way up the west side of Wall's property. Poppy Street also encroaches on this property. Wall would access his driveway via Poppy Street, essentially across Holsclaw's land
• Heard from Russell Brown, who withdrew his request for an extension to install a hard surface parking lot he was to complete no later than Nov. 1. Brown advised the board he had been asked to vacate the property he leases, 936 E. Detroit St., by Oct. 31.
Board members are Bruce Woodward, Dan Hampton, Tom Heuer, Richard Keeven and Alan Clingan. City council representative is Trish Brown. [[In-content Ad]]
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Several neighbors represented by Don Wihebrink remonstrated against Patricia Gargett's request regarding the property at 1331 E. Main St.
Appearing before the Warsaw Board of Zoning Appeals Monday, Gargett said since the 1940s the second floor of the house was used as an apartment on and off, complete with separate address, plumbing and utility meters. The last rental was five years ago.
The house is for sale and Gargett maintained it would be more marketable with the establishment of a permanent apartment.
Marsha Anderson, a Premier Real Estate sales person, appeared in support of Gargett.
The minimum lot size required for a two-unit dwelling is 8,500 square feet. Gargett's property measures 7,392 square feet. Establishment of parking spaces for four vehicles - two for residents of the bottom floor, two for the top - would essentially take up the entire yard.
Wihebrink presented a petition signed by 22 neighbors against the apartment. He said the property isn't a few square feet of the minimum requirements, it's 1,100 square feet short. He also said there is no off-street parking available on Main Street.
Wihebrink said he wanted the neighborhood to be owner-occupied, not dotted with a bunch of rentals.
"There's an abandoned house behind the property, and one boarded up across the street," he said. "Keep the neighborhood nice, we like living in town."
He said Anderson sold him his house a few years ago, touting the single family ownership in the neighborhood.
The request was denied, based on the square footage of the property.
In other business the board:
• Approved a request by Bob Petro, owner of Petro's GM, for an off-premise sign.
The property, at 2777 N. Detroit St., was zoned as a planned unit development in 2000. Off-premise signs are prohibited in this zone. The variance is for a 200-square-feet sign which will be 36 feet tall. The sign is to identify future shopping opportunities to the rear of the car dealership and identify various businesses in the development as they are open to shoppers.
One of the signs on the Petro GM property will be removed as an accomodation of the new sign.
• Approved with modifications a request by Patrick Pfefferkorn, 112 N. Sherman St., to install a 6-foot-high wooden fence on three sides of his property.
The fence will go up against a neighbor's chain link fence. On the south side of the property, the fence is to be no more than 3 feet high, 10 feet off the sidewalk.
Because of an alley encroachment on the north side, the variance must be approved by the Warsaw Board of Works.
• Approved a request by Tina Minnix-Phipps, 223 West Winona Ave., for a 6-foot-high fence within the first 10 feet of both front property lines and a 3-foot-high fence encroaching into the Washington Street right-of-way.
Because of the encroachment, the variance must be approved by the Warsaw Board of Works.
• Approved a request by James and Linda Howard, 985 Country Club Lane, for a variance from developmental standards on an undeveloped lot, to have a 20-foot, 5-inch front yard setback and 10 foot, 6-inch combined side yard setback.
• Approved a request by Russell Wall, 940 E. Arthur St., for a variance to construct an attached garage 11-1/4 inches below the flood protection grade in a flood hazard area.
Wall's home was constructed without a flood elevation certificate required by the city building and planning department 18 months ago. The house's finished floor is 4 inches below the flood protection grade.
Darlene Holsclaw, owner of an undeveloped lot south of the Wall property, appeared before the board to protest the request.
A survey shows her property also has a finger of land going north about half way up the west side of Wall's property. Poppy Street also encroaches on this property. Wall would access his driveway via Poppy Street, essentially across Holsclaw's land
• Heard from Russell Brown, who withdrew his request for an extension to install a hard surface parking lot he was to complete no later than Nov. 1. Brown advised the board he had been asked to vacate the property he leases, 936 E. Detroit St., by Oct. 31.
Board members are Bruce Woodward, Dan Hampton, Tom Heuer, Richard Keeven and Alan Clingan. City council representative is Trish Brown. [[In-content Ad]]