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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1310 LAPORTE AVENUE - MODIFICATION OF STANDARD - 35-04 - REPORTS - CITIZEN COMMUNICATION (6)have both a substantial investment in our homes as well as the best interests of the neighborhood at heart. We love where we live and we are reasonable people. We should not have to accommodate increased traffic, parking problems, potentially several more obnoxious neighbors, and a sardine -tight neighborhood so Mr. Jensen and Mr. Torgerson can make a profit. When we asked Mr. Torgerson and Mr. Jensen to follow city code with a smaller, more appropriate development, the response from Mr. Torgerson was, "I can't work with that. I'm a contractor. I can't not develop. This (development of three more houses) is going to happen." He then said we should give him design input for the three houses he plans on building. However, when we asked who had the last say about design, he said the builder did, but the builder had not been picked. We are at a loss to understand how any input we give Mr. Torgerson can be enforced. We subsequently learned that Mr. Torgerson is on the Fort Collins Planning and Zoning Board, which would explain his confidence in having his plan ultimately approved should it be denied at any preliminary stage. We hope that there is some mechanism in the approval process that will prevent Mr. Torgerson's blatant conflict of interest and potential undue influence on P&Z from giving this project undue consideration at a later stage should you decide to deny his and Mr. Jensen's request for modification. We do not object to a well -planned, appropriate development at 1310 LaPorte that addresses traffic, parking, access, safety, aesthetics, and the needs of the existing neighbors. We do not feel that the proposal from Mr. Jensen and Mr. Torgerson meets any of our needs, nor does it comply with city code. We appreciate your time in reading our concerns and sincerely urge you not to approve the developer's request for a variance. Sincerely, The Undersigned Neighbors of 1310 LaPorte Ave. N Address: Address: Phone: Phone: Email: Email: Name: Name: Address: Address: Phone: We realize the proposed development and the current obnoxious tenants are not strictly related; however, we are extremely concerned that any new houses built on the property will be attractive only to equally undesirable tenants, particularly given the extreme proximity of the houses as dictated by the developers' requested variance to put houses on lots that current city code deems too small. In any case, even with more courteous neighbors, the density is too extreme. Additionally and perhaps more importantly, the behavior and statements of the development's representatives made all the neighbors extremely uncomfortable and left us with the strong impression that they are in it to maximize profit with no regard to the impact on our neighborhood. When we asked Mr. Jensen and Mr. Torgerson who owned the property, they would not disclose the information. Under continued questioning for an answer to what seemed to us an extremely simple question, Mr. Jensen eventually offered the name of "Cindy" as the owner. Prior to offering the name "Cindy," Mr. Jensen said the owner of record was an attorney who wished to remain anonymous ("As is his right," according to Mr. Jensen), operating under the name of `BRE 1310 LaPorte." Finally Mr. Jensen said he was buying the property with the intention of selling to "Cindy." We found Mr. Jensen's labyrinthian explanation about ownership very disconcerting given the current problems at the property and his determination to cram three more houses onto it. Our neighborhood is/was quiet and largely owner -occupied. Through complicated means, we found an attorney named Andrew Bantham who had owned an interest in `BRE 1310 LaPorte." He reported selling his interest because the deal became ambiguous and strangely managed. Through a contact provided by Mr. Bantham, we came by Cindy Durand's name and phone number. Ms. Durand said she is the current owner of the property. At the Aug. 17 meeting, Mr. Jensen had said he would contact Ms. Durand regarding problems with the current tenants, expressing his deep concern with our problem. When we contacted her almost a week after the Aug. 17 meeting at which Mr. Jensen made this statement, it was the first Ms. Durand had heard of the problems. When we expressed our concerns about traffic, access, density, and aesthetics on Aug. 17, Mr. Jensen and Mr. Torgerson said they would address the problems but never offered tangible suggestions. When we suggested he build fewer than three houses, Mr. Jensen asked what the possible difference could be between two and three houses, accusing us of not wanting development of any kind, which is untrue. We want appropriate development, which considers the existing neighborhood and complies with city code. Mr. Jensen said he could not make any money by building fewer than three houses. We suggest that these developers, who have no stake in our neighborhood other than their desire to maximize return on an investment, invest their capital elsewhere. We sincerely urge you to consider the needs of the current owner -occupants in our neighborhood. We our homes do not sit on lots smaller than 6000 sq. feet. Old Town in general, and our neighborhood in particular, is already densely housed with existing homes and a trailer park less than half a block away from 1310 LaPorte. The property just to the east of 1310 LaPorte sits on a very small lot. We feel density beyond approved levels is overcrowding, especially considering we already have some houses sitting on lots smaller than 6000 sq. feet. 2. Increased traffic and driveway openings at an already busy intersection of McKinley and LaPorte. a. McKinley is the artery to LaPorte Ave for the residents of the neighborhood to the northeast and northwest of the proposed development. There is no other outlet to a major thoroughfare, and morning and afternoon traffic through our streets is already heavy. b. The sides of McKinley do not line up at the intersection with LaPorte Ave. Drivers negotiate that jog through busy LaPorte traffic to gain access to Mountain Ave. via the south side of McKinley. The intersection is about fifty feet from a school crossing, and many children walk down McKinley on their way to Putnam Elementary School each morning. 3. There is already a paucity of parking available on N. McKinley, with no parking at all on LaPorte. a. Literally two to three additional cars parked on the street create a parking crisis under existing conditions. b. The city indicates property access will not be likely off LaPorte because of heavy traffic, further crowding N. McKinley. 4. The current structure at 1310 LaPorte is a beautiful, historic brick home. Its beauty and the integrity of the Old Town neighborhood flavor will be severely compromised by new construction crammed on lots too small to accommodate it. Although the developers say they want high -end homes that will attract desirable neighbors, we seriously doubt an owner -occupant's desire to pay upwards of $400,000 for a home on a lot so skinny that they will have to share property access with the occupants of three other lots. The current lot with the existing historic home sold for only $430,000, so the information they gave us seems implausible. As concerns the current state of 1310 LaPorte: 1. In June 2004, the owner leased the existing structure to several tenants. As of August, there are six unrelated people living in the house (the 1310 LaPorte neighbors received a letter from the residents listing occupant names and phone numbers). Current city ordinance mandates no more than three unrelated people per dwelling. 2. Since June, there have been several visits by the police (a minimum of six occasions by our count) regarding loud noise and obnoxious behavior till the early morning hours (4 in the morning). The tenants have received one ticket for a noise violation. Sept. 1, 2004 The Neighbors of 1310 LaPorte Ave. McKinley Ave., LaPorte Ave, Lyons St, Roosevelt St., and Leland St. Fort Collins, CO 80521 (Denise Walters, 149 N. McKinley Ave., author — I will bring a hardcopy with neighbor signatures to the hearing) Administrative Hearing Officer City of Fort Collins Fort Collins, CO Dear Hearing Officer: We are the neighbors of the proposed development at 1310 LaPorte Ave. On August 17, 2004, many of us attended an informational meeting about plans for the property. A large turnout from the neighborhood was indicative of our concern about the current state of the property as well as the proposed development. We are signing this letter in unison to convey our extreme opposition to the proposal from the developers to add three more houses to a lot that cannot, by the city's own standards, accommodate them. Mike Jensen and Mikal Torgerson represented the interests of the development at the meeting. We have concerns about their intentions and the state in which they will leave our neighborhood if the city grants them their requested modification, which we feel will cause the following problems: 1. Density at a higher level than city code currently dictates. a. The developers want three houses on lots that will be much smaller than the mandated 6000 sq. feet required once sidewalks and access are considered. One lot is estimated to be only 5300-5500 sq. feet. This is not a matter of inches or even a yard or two. Although the developers assured us they want beautiful homes that will attract desirable owner occupants willing to pay upwards of $400,000, lot size would seem to dictate skinny row houses with small yards and limited, complicated property access more likely to be acceptable to short-term renters. Records show the property with the existing historic house sold for only $430,000. We do not understand how the developers expect to split the lot into slivers and sell new homes for $400,000 each. b. The developers argue that several houses in the area are built on lots smaller than mandated by current city code. Using this logic, they argue that they are in keeping with existing structures. However, the majority of .Anne Aspen - letter Page 1 J From: "Walters, Denise Elizabeth" <den ise.walters @ hp.com> To: <aaspen@fcgov.com> Date: 10/13/04 2:54PM Subject: letter Hi Anne, Attached please find a letter that was signed by most of the neighbors of 1310 LaPorte in hardcopy. I just got word that you had already sent in the packet to the hearing officer and that I should just send you this letter without the signatures. I'll bring the hardcopy to the hearing. Please let me know if you are able to include this letter. Thank you for all your assistance. Kind regards, Denise Walters C:G�J�tiGr"u9yz. G`�c'9� /o�j,`3/o �!