inside of the garage this is this was the party wall prior members of the board so when my client
took this down because it was in poor shape this is all we saw um again we're trying to work with
but my understanding is lni has been called out with respect to this issue and it is the
it is unfortunately the responsibility of the homeowner here to remedy this as it was an issue
that was caused by the builder of their home that said we're still trying to talk with the adjacent
neighbor about figuring out a solution to this these are photos of the interior there's not a
lot left in there we still have the staircase that leads up to the upstairs second story
these are just additional photos of the exterior site plan making no real changes to the property
oh that's upside down here's our proposed floor plan basement is going to be totally open for
storage the commercial spot is going to be here to the rear and to the front this entryway will
allow people to get into their units unit one is here two bedrooms about 645 square feet unit two
Unit two is two bedrooms, probably one bedroom, 530 square feet. So if this were an RSA five
is two bedrooms probably one bedroom 530 square feet so if this
home members of the board, in case there are any arguments about potential overcrowding,
there's only three bedrooms here, whereas a new single family would have something like four
or five for a comparably sized property. That's ultimately it, members of the board. From what I
understand, a tenant has been secured who already has a very successful restaurant just a few blocks
away there was a different concept that they wanted to have here at this location
there was initially an application to have off street parking we're not pursuing that any longer
uh at the recommendation of the rco um and i believe well why don't you have your client
yep so doctor's testimony patrick if you're on the line would you please raise your hand
it has to be unmuted
I know he was responsible to get his kids earlier
so he may not be here any longer members of the board
so you're an officer of the court
we'll take your testimony
questions from the board
no Mr. Chairman
no Mr. Chairman
no Mr. Chairman
questions or comments from the virtual audience
Mr. Chair this is Hillary
I just wanted to note
um the the refusal has has a general commercial use listed um the zoning board um the the zoning
board cannot approve a general commercial use i didn't know um until today getting more information
from the community um that there was a take actually a takeout restaurant being proposed
because originally my i was going to say that the board could just um if they were inclined to
approve this application, only approve the residential component of it. But if there
is a specific commercial use that your client would like to be included in the application,
the refusal is going to need to be amended with that specific use. We cannot, the general,
a general use is not going to allow them to set up a commercial space.
leo you're you you're muted you're muted i i realize that i'm sorry so my suggestion that
members of the board is this might we hold the vote i seek to obtain that amended refusal come
back and then we would vote on it because otherwise we'd be back in front of the board
for the same thing more or less um in about a year from now and that's not that that doesn't
seem efficient from my perspective and that's yeah that's that's fine mr chair i think because
we do have people here today that um want to testify we should take the testimony um from them
and um from the planning commission as well and i i just wanted to clarify too with with mr mulvihill
it was discussed at the community meeting what the commercial use would be already oh yes okay
okay so they are aware that a takeout restaurant is what is being proposed okay that's that's what
i i gathered from the correspondence i received but i wanted to confirm yes so okay so they can
testify as to to that today but we'll need to amend the refusal to formalize that so the board
can actually consider that all right so questions or comments from the virtual audience
chair we have excuse me we have someone with the first name beginning an s and the last name
beginning an h okay mute yourself hello hi could you state your name please and spell it for the
court reporter yes my name is sanaz hodra s-a-n as in nancy a z as in zebra last name is h-o-j-r-e-h
right do you swear for him to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth
i do are you a neighbor yes i am okay proceed um myself and several others at our board zoning
meeting that's the testimony of anybody other than herself she doesn't have personal knowledge
all right so can i speak go ahead there are several neighbors who are unhappy including
Okay, so what I want you to do, Sanaz, Sanaz, listen to me. What I want you to do is tell me
why you're opposed to it. This building has been abandoned for several years. And this redeveloper
had initially come in saying that they were going to make it into a one-family home.
And from my understanding, that this vet clinic was given a grant of allowing a variance of being
a space where it's going to be a commercial property. And since then, it has been over
eight years, I believe, that it has been abandoned as such. And therefore, that variance is no longer
valid. And now to bring in and have a commercial property, I do not agree with it. And while
And while there's a bakery across the street and a child care center across the street, a takeout venue is far different from those two things.
there's a bakery across the street, and a childcare center across the street,
We understand it.
And thank you for taking the time, the calls.
Is there anyone else in the virtual audience that has a comment?
Yes, Chair.
We have Dina, last name, ending in F and D.
Can you hear me?
Hi, Kai.
Could you state your name and spell for the court reporter, please?
My name is Dena Driscoll, D-E-N-A, last name Driscoll, D-R-I-S-C-O-L-L.
All right.
Do you swear for him to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Are you a neighbor?
Okay, proceed.
I own a home on the 1200 block of Garrett Street.
And as a near neighbor, we support and welcome multifamily housing and a new thriving takeout business in our neighborhood, my husband and I.
That's all.
Thank you so much for calling.
Thank you.
Is there anyone else in the virtual audience?
Yes, Chair.
We have Stephen, last name ending in F.
Could you state your name for us?
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
yep steven fabiani uh that's like frank a b i a n i right do you swear affirm tell the truth
whole truth nothing but the truth i do proceed okay um before i begin i should uh let the board
know that we that i submitted to the board earlier today a petition with at this point about 18
signatures in opposition okay in addition there are several exhibits um that go to one of our
arguments um this is a group of 12 uh households all within why don't you sir why don't you do
this why don't you tell us why you you're against it i'm i'm headed right there um the uh the
The grounds that the premise is – the premise of the property should be commercials incorrect, as is the assertion that the property had never been single-family.
As was stated earlier, the property had been a single-family dwelling and was granted a one-time exemption for a live-in business, meaning the owner was the operator of the business, the veterinary clinic.
And that exemption expired, as was previously stated. Our concerns also include due process, safety, excessive existing and planned commercial and multifamily spaces in the area, traffic congestion, parking, and unresolved design and ventilation.
less than 48 hours ago the community first learned that the intended use for the space
included a takeout restaurant and a loading zone less than 48 hours ago okay in the subsequent two
days several neighbors have written letters of opposition to councilman school's office and to
the board to which he has not yet had a chance to respond but has assured us that he would
we've managed to put together the petition which has been submitted and requests either an outright
denial at this time for the variance or continuance that allows the board time to consider
our concerns. 18 signatures so far. Okay, so thank you for your call, and I appreciate you've been
waiting a long time. You called earlier today. We hear your comments. We understand it, and I'm
going to move on to see if there's anyone else in the audience wants to say something. Is there any
other persons in the virtual audience yes chair we have about six hands up now how many hands
six thanks and the next person is laurie last name beginning in m okay state your name and
spell for the court reporter hi my name is laurie mazer m-a-z-e-r first name l-a-u-r-i-e do you
swear for him to tell the truth the whole truth nothing but the truth yes are you a neighbor
Yes, I am.
Are you for or against the property?
For the property.
And I'm in a 1400 block of 13th Street.
And I have lived here since 2015.
And I have two kids.
And my husband and our family is deeply supportive of multifamily housing, takeout, restaurants.
We live in a thriving area.
And this would fit in perfectly with our neighborhood.
Thank you so much for your call and taking the time.
Thank you.
Who else is in the audience?
Chair, next we have Peter, last name beginning with a V as in Victor.
Hi Peter, could you state your name and spell for the court reporter?
Hi, Peter, could you state your name and spell for the court reporter?
Peter?
Peter?
Peter, please unmute yourself.
He's allowed to speak.
Do you want me to move on to the next person?
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court reporter?
Hey there.
Hey there.
I'm sorry.
Can you hear me now?
We can.
Sorry about that.
I was trying to read from a letter of support that I had written.
No, no.
Start.
First, could you state your name and spell it, please?
Yeah, I will.
I will do that.
It is Peter Varecchia, V as in Victor, E-R-R-E-C-C-H-I-A.
You swear for him to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
I do swear that.
So, Peter, we've heard both sides of this.
We'd like to know, are you for the project or against the project?
I am enthusiastically for the project.
And you're a neighbor?
I am a neighbor.
I live at 1415 South Earth, 13th Street, less than 80 feet away from the project.
I've lived here for 26 years.
I know the developer.
I know the spot.
I've been looking at that very ugly situation for a long time.
I believe, as Laurie Mazur stated earlier, that a mixed-use situation for the spot is
perfect.
It will add to life and a really nice quality of life here in Patrick.
Peter, we appreciate your call.
We understand where you are, but I want to get on to get to anyone else that wants to
say something.
Who else in the virtual audience?
Thank you, Peter.
chair we have michael last name beginning with h
hi michael could you state your name and spell for the court reporter
michael hallowell last name spelled h-a-l-l-o-w-e-l-l right do you swear or affirm to tell
the truth the whole truth nothing but the truth i do mr michael you're a neighbor i am a neighbor
Michael, we've heard both sides of this.
Are you for or against the project?
I am vehemently against the project.
We appreciate your call.
And we want to get on to let other people put their name in here, too.
So thank you very much.
Who else in the virtual audience?
Here we have Lois, last name beginning with J.
Lois, could you state your name and spell for the court reporter?
Lois Janky, J-A-N-K-E.
Right.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Lois, we've heard from both sides of this.