My Belmont Heights

Sept. 13th
Note: The following paragraph is an update on the Report that was presented at the Sept. 12 BHCA meeting (below):
Councilmember DeLong requested and received a continuance from the Sept. 18th City Council agenda item until October 9th. Between now and then, the full staff report will be issued (should be posted by Sept. 14th), and the Neighborhood Preservation Commitee will be able review it and make recommended amendments, if needed. It was agreed upon by the BHCA members present that between now and October 9th there would not be enough time to hold a community meeting, so we will rely on the website, newpaper coverage, and emails to hear pros and cons of the proposed ordinance. Please continue to check this website for the Committee's comments AND please post your own comments regarding the staff report.

You can read the full committee report below that was read at the Sept. 12 BHCA meeting. Thanks.

September 12, 2007
Belmont Heights Community Association Meeting
Report from the Neighborhood Preservation Committee (NPC)
(The NPC consists of the following members: Marc Coleman and Maureen Neeley, CoChairs, Mike Stewart, Marky Morel, Grace Parris, Jerry Olivera, Bette McKinney, Craig Starnes, Paul Murname, Dianne Sundstrom, Jonathon Glasgow, Elizabeth Lambe, Maureene Hay, Alan Pullman, Susan Bach-Bradley, and Mark Huffman)

Background
At the large BHCA February 28th, 2007 meeting, over 100 neighbors expressed concerns that the character of the neighborhood has been negatively impacted by the acceleration in tear-downs and major remodels. Through the results of the survey distributed that evening and via the BHCA website it was clear that over 90% of the attendees wanted the BHCA to work with the City to stop or slow the destruction of the fabric of the neighborhood.

To that end, a Neighborhood Preservation Committee (NPC) was formed (see members listed above) and began reviewing options available to the Heights, studying what other cities had done in the area of slowing down teardowns and keeping their neighborhood character intact.

Hopefully, everyone has been following the BHCA’s efforts on the website www.mybelmontheights.org/npc, or have attended the monthly BHCA meetings where reports on this issue were given and voted upon.

Current Issues
Since our last BHCA meeting in July 2007, the NPC has presented to the Neighborhood and Housing Committee the BHCA’s desire to decrease the number of tear-downs and subsequent re-building of out-of-scale and inconsistent architecture for the neighborhood.

Neighborhood and Housing Committee asked Planning Staff to put together recommendations to achieve the above. Members of the NPC met with Suzanne Frick and Angela Reynolds (Planning & Building staff) to discuss options and how the BHCA would like the city to approach the first phase (an interim ordinance). The NPC stressed that we need to “stop the bleeding” first, then take the interim period to go back to the community to get input on the best way to move forward into a permanent ordinance.

The NPC was assured that Planning would work with us on the interim recommendations. Unfortunately, the staff report has been written without any further NPC input. Thus we (the NPC) do not know the rationale for some of the items proposed and have concerns that the proposed zoning changes for the Heights may not be optimal, even as interim measures. The report will be available to the public (us) by Friday, Sept. 14th.

The BHCA still does not have access to the actual report. Fortunately, we were able to reach Planning and, according to a phone conversation with Angela Reynolds, we know that staff is recommending the following FOR THE PERIOD OF ONE YEAR:

a. Issue no demolition permits on buildings over 45 years old;

b. Recraft what a “demolition” is, from 50% of structure to 30% of structure;

c. Reduce Floor Area Ratio (F.A.R.) from .6 to .4;

d. Require any 2nd story additions to be stepped back at least 10’. This last item is an effort to reduce the amount of square footage that can be added.

The staff recommendations are set to be presented at the September 18th Council Meeting.

The 3rd District councilmember, Gary DeLong is not going to be in attendance due to a prior commitment.

The NPC recommends that the staff report and attending agenda item, at least as to Belmont Heights, be continued for 30 days so that Councilmember DeLong will be there to hear his constituency regarding this interim ordinance. The 30-day continuance will also give the BHCA a chance to discuss with Planning Staff their recommendations and supporting data. We can also discuss alternatives that may be more effective and specifically tailored. During this time the BHCA can hold a community meeting to discuss the staff report. It is possible, with Belmont Heights community input, that we ask for an amendment to the staff report during the next 30 days.

Actions for tonight’s meeting:

1) Vote on recommending a 30-day continuance of this Council item of “Mansionization in Belmont Heights” from September 18 to October 16.

2) Discuss what we know of the proposed staff recommendations.

Approved by the Neighborhood Preservation Committee and
Respectfully submitted by,
Maureen Neeley, NPC Co-Chair