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1005 Indiana Fire
Lawrence Douglas County Fire and Medical crews respond to a house fire at 1005 Indiana on Thursday.
Opposition is emerging in the Oread Neighborhood, as property owners consider rebuilding a home that was destroyed in a July 31 fire.
The fire started after fireworks were shot outside the residence, 1005 Ind., and ignited a couch on the porch, fire officials said. The fire caused about $360,000 in damage, and the structure will likely have to be torn down.
As the owners look to rebuild a similar rental home on the property, an issue with parking could stand in their way, said Rob Farha, agent of record for Crimson Properties, LLC, which owns the house that contained eight bedrooms.
The house was grandfathered into a current Lawrence city code that requires homes in Lawrence to have parking on the property. There aren't any parking spots on the Indiana property, which meant the occupants had to park on the street or sometimes in a friendly neighbor's driveway.
Now that the house is destroyed and must be rebuilt, the code requires the owners to include six parking spots on the property if the new home is built to be occupied by eight people, which is the owners' desire, Farha said.
The ownership group has requested a variance to the city code, saying it's not possible to rebuild a home of the same size on the property and allow for parking, Farha said.
"We're hoping that they would see an exception," Farha said. "We didn't purposely destroy the house; it was an accident, and we're hoping they see that and let us put back exactly what we had there."
Many homes in the Oread Neighborhood are converted to apartments and rented to groups of college students attending nearby Kansas University. Some homes in the neighborhood have parking off the alleys behind them. But not enough room exists on the Indiana property for both parking and a house of the same size, Farha said.
"There is no solution we can find to put in any parking," he said.
But some neighbors don't buy it, saying that the code is in place for a reason and that the owners are just looking out for their own business interests.
"This situation is about an investment and money, and we're not as interested in that personal investment, but rather what's good for the neighborhood," said Candice Davis, vice president of the Oread Neighborhood Association.
If the city allows the requested variance, the occupants of the new home would have to park on the street, as before, which is unreasonable and leaves the street cluttered, Davis said. Parking in that block is limited to one side of Indiana Street.
"We're concerned about maintaining some stability and livability in the neighborhood," Davis said. "When you have too many requests for variances, pretty soon these codes don't mean anything."
The owners received a variance on another property at 1334 Ohio, a home that initially housed 14 people. The owners reduced the occupancy to 12 and added a fourth and a fifth parking spot behind the home, Farha said.
He said the group of property owners is willing to work with neighbors regarding the Indiana home, but the neighbors should also recognize the work and care they've put into the seven homes they own in the neighborhood, which he said were dilapidated until they cleaned them up.
"There's a fine line : to make everybody happy," Farha said.
The variance request for the Indiana home will be heard by the city's board of zoning appeals on Oct. 2, said Scott McCullough, city planning and development services director.
Comments
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somebodynew (anonymous) says…
While I will not disagree with you about Davis (having dealt with her a few times) on this issue I see the point. Lots of these older places have been "grandfathered" in because of their age, which I understand. But, when something happens (I think stupidity not accident) then it is time to bring places into compliance with current standards. Otherwise you just perpetuate the built in problems these places have caused. Parking is not a thing to be taken lightly in this area and has an effect on lots of people. If you have to build it smaller is that such a big problem?? Other than a few bucks less per month. I know these guys seem to do a great job in building good looking houses, but I think they have enough of them to make a decent return on their investments. (I have never lived in one so I have no idea how good of care they take of them.)I think that when something needs to be rebuilt for whatever reason, current codes should be enforced. That is the way to make a neighborhood better and prevent future problems.
dweezil222 (anonymous) says…
Think of it this way: Whenever a property owner is refurbishing a property,that isn't up to code, they are required to fix any code problem then existing even if it was grandfathered in. When you have to rebuild the whole damn building, why shouldn't you have to do the same?
flyin_squirrel (anonymous) says…
The Oread needs to get rid of Candice Davis. No matter what anyone does, she complains. Before these guys bought this house, it was an eye sore. The Oread should welcome landlords like them, whom keep their properties clean, manicured and up to code.And Candice Davis will complain no matter what they do. The options are:1. Rebuild the existing house without parking (not changing a thing in the neighborhood since there wasn't parking before)2. Build to existing parking codes. In order for this to work, it would be a smaller house. Picture one of the 4 bedroom houses off 25th and Wakarusa (would look terrible in this neighborhood).3. Build a duplex (probably the only way to make it profitable with parking). Doesn't the Oread dislike duplexes already?Candice needs to pick her poison, and from the looks of it she should push for the parking variance.
flyin_squirrel (anonymous) says…
Dweezil222,The reason a variance is needed, is due to the fact it cannot be built with parking. Look at the lot and tell me where you can build a parking lot...The Oread has many huge houses that take up most of the lot. This is one of those.
igby (anonymous) says…
Rebuild the house just like it was before the fire. The pricks can't beitch about rebuilding the house.
delta77 (anonymous) says…
Why not build an underground parking garage?
delta77 (anonymous) says…
BTW, I'm joking.
gccs14r (anonymous) says…
Delta, Why must it be a joke? Dig a hole, build a ramp leading down, and put the house on top. No grass to mow then, either.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus (anonymous) says…
"Isn't it interesting that marci and the oread group would consider "waiving' parking requirements if the Varsity House"What's marci got to do with this, aside from your obsession, hawk?
dweezil222 (anonymous) says…
I'm just making the argument any lawyer the Oread people retain will make. Quite frankly, I think the guy should be able to do just about whatever the hell he wants with the property.I like the idea of whoever said they should drop a mobile home on the lot. Bet Candace Davis whould s*** bricks if they did that. Put a couple of them on there; I'm sure the lot's big enough to hold two.
sjschlag (anonymous) says…
I say get a group of investors together, tear down the property, then ask the city if it is okay to levy an additional 1% tax on the property to pay for an underground parking garage. Then build up a 10 story condominium tower and sell the condos for $500,000 a pop. I think the Oread Neighborhood association would be behind that, hell the City Commission might even throw a million bucks your way that they don't have. Atleast you would be ahead of the curve. Seriously, build the house back the way it was before. Hell, go overboard and throw some nice insulation and a geothermal heating/cooling system in there so that the tenants will pay more for energy efficiency. It could be the "greenest" house on the block...just an idea. The Oread Neighborhood association should back down, let this guy restore his house back to the way it was. Atleast he's being pro-active about his property, unlike the owners of 1232 Louisiana, who have yet to destroy that fire hazard. They said they were going to demolish it a month ago. What happened?
flyin_squirrel (anonymous) says…
somebodynew,Why would anyone rebuild a rental house to lose money? Do you go to work to lose money? How can you expect them to rebuild the house smaller and take a loss? Plus, even if you built it as a 4 bedroom house, you still need a parking variance.
458casul (anonymous) says…
leave it just the way it is and paint on the house in big letters.Candance davis did this.And let it stay an eye soar for years. let the nut cases have it and they can plant a garden around it and sell to the merc to pay taxes for cantdance davis.Rob hire a couple of students to go party with cantdance davis and show her real good time and they could change her mind and soul on this issue.Better not do that it would cost more than the house is worth
BigPrune (anonymous) says…
I don't know jack about the Oread Neighborhood Association and this soap opera. What needs to happen in Lawrence in general is people need to start suing the opposition personally. That would shut them up.hawk, how much does the City give these neighborhood groups and why does the City give them anything at all?
gccs14r (anonymous) says…
If a variance is allowed, an unfortunate side effect may be the "accidental" burning of lots of other properties in town. I don't think we want to go there.
cg22165 (anonymous) says…
Personalities aside, it comes down to a) Why was the ordinance created?versusb) Why do the owners seek a variance?It was a cool old house, but it is no more. Obviously, it was built when that spot was right for a single-family dwelling, and at a time when not everyone had a car. Things have changed. It would be a pity to loose the nice fence and yard, but it looks like you might be able to put the required parking there. It would not be as pretty, but it would not push the parking space problem off on to the other owners around it.2 c
cheeseburger (anonymous) says…
Me wonders if opportunist Davis ever lodged a complaint relative to the parking at this particular address prior to the fire, or if she is using the fire to further her own personal agenda. Me thinks it is the latter!
dweezil222 (anonymous) says…
Wait -- this isn't just a community action group, but actually receives funds from the city? That changes the whole complexion. Farha would be wise to have a lawyer on retainer, because this whole situation just got the smell of a very messy lawsuit.
flyin_squirrel (anonymous) says…
Candice Davis needs to quit using the Oread Neighborhood Association VP designation to push her own personal agendas. Rebuild the house or except the fact that the Oread will remain a student getto.
flyin_squirrel (anonymous) says…
Isn't this the same Candice Davis that runs a "home based business" out of her house in the Oread? And doesn't she also have clients visiting her house, which doesn't have extra parking? And I wonder if she has had her house inspected by the city, which is needed for a home based business?People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw rocks...
Orange (anonymous) says…
I believe Mr.Farah and his investors should be allowed to rebuild the structure as it was. They may need to rely more on the historic environs. Any thing different then the previous house would endanger the fragile historic district that the Oread is made of. Mr. Farha may be able to use the approval of 1129 Vermont's building permit after an extensive fire damage and non conforming use. As for the the members of the Oread they should be concerned that their properties are non-conforming to the city codes. They are required to register the non-conforming residential use with the neighboord resource department since the zonning of most of the Oread is for Mulity family, same requirement applies to commercial non-conforming uses which are registered in residential district. the city needs to do a better job on enforcing all the rules and not just some.
Orange (anonymous) says…
Ms. Davis would need a variance to build it as a single family house, that's for sure.
kusp8 (anonymous) says…
Say what you want about Topeka, but this $hit wouldn't be going down there. These wannabe Johnson County brats need to go ahead and leave Lawrence and take their whining with them.
dweezil222 (anonymous) says…
hawkperchedatriverfront (Anonymous) says: The city commission needs to quit funding these 5 target neighborhood groups. If they want to be activists, then let them do it on their own dime.==================================I agree. The city shouldn't be funding this. At minimum, it's a clear conflict of interest, one that smacks heavily of preferential treatment for some property owners over others.
flyin_squirrel (anonymous) says…
logicsound04,I don't think they want a parking variance based on "the way it was before". I think they are asking for a variance because there is no way to build parking on that lot. The lot has no curb cut, the width of the house doesn't allow a driveway to be pour on either side, and the alley in back is a 30 foot hill with many old trees (don't even try to tear down a tree in this town).If the city wants them to build something with parking, they will have to demolish the entire house (could keep the old existing foundation the way it is now) and put up an ugly duplex or small house.And then they will have to deal with the Historic which will say they have to build back the way it was. It is an endless loop that without a variance has no answer.And Candice Davis needs to be thrown out of the ONA. Nobody respects her opinion any more, including the other ONA members.
flyin_squirrel (anonymous) says…
farha for president of the ona!
gccs14r (anonymous) says…
Who in their right mind would pay $1500/mo for a 3br house with no off-street parking?
Crossfire (anonymous) says…
Just turn the vacated property into a parking lot.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsPh_8Dxl3E&feature=related