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Chardon planners OK two residences on lot
(by Joseph Koziol Jr. - September 22, 2011)
Chardon planners OK two residences on lot
By JOSEPH KOZIOL JR.
Chardon city planners approved two residences on a single lot Monday in what has been a single-family residence district.
The city's planning commission gave its unanimous support to a conditional use for a property at 310 N. Hambden St.
One of the residences will be a new single-family home on the property and living quarters above a new garage. The request was made by property owner Frank Mintern.
"It's obviously a major improvement to that property," Councilman Robert Cromwell, a member of the planning commission, said.
Mr. Mintern, who grew up in Geauga County, said he planned to give the new home a "longtime look."
"It's important that it fits into the town," Mr. Mintern said.
Chardon Planning and Zoning Administrator Steve Yaney said this was the second time Mr. Mintern had come before the city with the request.
In December, he said, Mr. Mintern was rejected by the city's board of zoning appeals for a similar use of the property. He said a rewrite of the city's planning code now gives the commission the authority to oversee conditional-use requests.
At the time of the December hearing, Mr. Yaney said, Mr. Mintern did not provide plans for the home to be built there.
He said five properties nearby, three on North Hambden Street and two on Huntington Street, already have multifamily settings. Other than the request to provide for two residences, Mr. Yaney said, the plans meet all other code requirements.
Mr. Mintern said his property is a deep lot, measuring 108 by 315 feet, which would provide ample space for his project and the house and garage would use less land, on a percentage basis, than neighboring properties.
He said he intended to build the garage first, live in it while the house is constructed, then move to the house and allow his aging parents to live in the space above the garage.
Mr. Yaney said the existing home at 310 N. Hambden St. is uninhabitable without major renovations or removal.
"Staff does not believe the request as proposed will have any adverse effects on the adjoining properties," Mr. Yaney wrote in a report to the commission. "The improvements to the existing conditions and the design of the proposed residence would be beneficial to the neighborhood."
The commission agreed that the new plans for the property would be in the best long-term interests of the city.
"My observation is this is a good deal for the city," commission chairman Kenneth Miller said.
He said the city has discussed its long-range plans with an planning consultant, which included discussions of how to handle long, narrow lots. The concern is that a developer could seek to buy and assemble several of the back portions of the lots and create subdivisions there. He said the city has several long, narrow lots along North Hambden and North streets.
Mr. Mintern's plans, he said, would eliminate that possibility for the city. In addition, he said, Mr. Mintern could have sought a lot split for his property and created two homes which met city requirements.
He said he was pleased with the plans shown for the home and garage that Mr. Mintern provided. "The rendering looks pretty decent," he said.
Commission member Andrew Blackley said he also believed the city was getting a good deal in the matter. "I applaud your investment in this community," he said.
Councilwoman Leslie Bednar said there is a trend in the country for children to provide space in a home or a separate suite for aging parents and that this plan followed that trend.
Mr. Yaney said Mr. Mintern provided a schedule for construction. He is expected to provide formal plans to the city by fall 2011 and break ground on the garage in the spring of 2012. The garage is expected to be completed by the fall of 2012, at which time Mr. Mintern will occupy the living quarters.
In the fall of 2012, Mr. Mintern will remove the existing home and begin construction on the new house in the summer of 2013. By the summer of 2014, he is expected to complete the house and move in, allowing his parents to move into the space above the garage.
The commission established two conditions for the approval. Only Mr. Mintern may occupy the apartment above the garage until the new house is built. A second condition is that the house be built or the existing house be brought into compliance by Dec. 31, 2014.
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