04/27/1981 Board of Public Works Minutes

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REGULAR MEETING APRIL 27, 1981 for the upkeep of the alley if closed. He felt that the extra land which would be added to the adjacent properties would be of little value to the property owners if the vacation was approved. He stated that he would not be able to use his garage without incurring additional expense if the alley was closed. He stated that, if only the east half of the alley was closed, he felt it was very probable that the city would not maintain the west half of the alley as it should be. Mr. Harter stated that the west part of the alley would be used by the employees and delivery trucks of the nursing home. He stated that his garage had been built over 55 years ago, and he presented a map showing his property and the alley, pointing out the difficulty he would encounter trying to use his garage should the alley be vacated. Mrs. Harter stated that she had objected to the signing of the petition of the Nursing Home for the vacation; however, her neighbor, Mrs. Henry, had signed although Mrs. Harter felt Mrs. Henry had signed not because she had been so anxious to have the alley closed, but because she had probably been told by the Nursing Home representative that the nursing home would be interested in buying her property if she was interested in selling. Mrs. Harter stated that she had called the Engineering Office and had been told that the city was interested in vacating all alleys so it would not have to maintain them. Mrs. Beck stated that she felt if the Nursing Home wanted to expand, it should purchase commercial property along Mishawaka Avenue for that purpose, rather than infringing upon the residential neighborhood. Mr. Tom Marshall, 927 South 27th Street, felt that the surrounding reisdents did not realize just how much ofs an expansion program was being proposed by the Nursing Home. He stated that the proposed building would come within 20 feet of his property and extend all the way along the alley. He felt the uncertainty of the proposal was one of the reasons why the residents were objecting. Mr. Hill stated that this type of situation has been before the Board in the past. He clarified for the residents that the Board must take a look at the vacation of the alley only and must look at access to adjacent property owners and the effect any closing would have on emergency vehicular traffic. He stressed that, although he appreciated the concerns of the residents in relation to the rezoning of the property for future expansion, the Area Plan Commission and Common Council only had jurisdiction in that area, and the Board had nothing to say about the rezoning issue. He stated that the point which concernce him was that a property owner would not have access to his garage if the vacation was approved. He felt perhaps the Board should make an inspection of the alley in question prior to taking any action on the matter. Upon a motion made by Mr. Hill, seconded by Mr. Kernan and carried, the public hearing was continued in order to allow for a site visit by the Board. Mr. Hill stated that the Board would notify those concerned reisdents and the Nursing Home when the tour would take place. Mr. Larry Yazel, 939 South 27th Street, asked that the Board come out when traffic was heaviest because he felt the vacation of the alley would cause even greater traffic congestion. He suggested anytime after 3:30 p.m., preferably on a Friday. Mr. Leszczynski stated that the site inspection would be made during the coming week so that the Board could take final action at its meeting on May 4, 1981. Mrs. Beck asked that the Board take a good look at the fire safety problem in the area prior to making a decision on the vacation. Mr. Hardig stated that he disputed certain allegations made concerning the employees and delivery trucks of the Nursing Home concerning traffic and tying up the block. As to the gas line, he stated that the line would be moved if the alley was vacated. He stated that there was another assertion made about the Nursing Home offering to buy up property in the area. He felt this was an unfair implication to make and stated that, if an adjoining neighbor was to place his home up for sale, the Nursing Home would certainly be interested in purchasing it. He advised that, if Mrs. Henry had expressed a concern as to who would buy her property in the future, the representative from the Nursing Home would, of course, mention that the home would be interested in purchasing it. He stated that he was pleased to see that the Board would make a site visit. He offered any assistance he could to the Harters in helping 1 1 1