09-28-09 Common Council Meeting Agenda & Packet

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Area Board of Zoning Appeals -September 2, 2009 middle with curbs on the inside and outside of the narrow roadway. Barely wide enough for two cars to go through. I know this very well because I grew up in the house next door to the house in question. I as a young teenager watch them build the house in question. I watched them put that circle down there. It was not there when we moved into that house when I was a youth. As I got older I quit worrying about construction and cars and started paying attention to the girls. I married the girl next door, right down the street my wife lived. Two intersections, I lived on York and Garland and there's York and Ridgedale and then there's Yorlc and Woodside. I dated the girl there. I walked back and forth. I drove back and forth. It was a family neighborhood thing. After being married we never left South Bend. We bought a house, small starter house. Another house a little larger later on. We always aspired to come back to this wonderful neighborhood because that's what it is a neighborhood with families, with large trees, it's the nicest part of South Bend. It's one of your show areas. I think you know that. I hate to see it ruined by having a business in the neighborhood. But I do just want to close with from where I grew up to my future wife's home where she lived, on both sides of the street there was only eight houses. Total of eight houses between our two houses. Across the street from that house now is already a group home. MS. JILL HILLMAN: I live at 1404 Ridgedale Road. I wanted to speak because we own not just one house there, we actually own five city lots and the south side of our property bounds Garland Road, Garland Circle area there so we fill in the extra spot that has no houses on it. It's all wooded. Our house was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. We have had visitors around the world come to visit our house because it's not just an unusual example of Frank Lloyd Wrights' architecture but it's one of the few remaining that still maintain it's original setting, it's original neighborhood atmosphere. Most houses have been sold off. The neighbors have changed around them so I would really, really hate to see a business come, one that is uncertain in length, what would happen after that business was no longer in existence. What would happen if one of the caretakers who are both a little more elderly would pass away. I mean who would take their place. It just makes me very nervous to see this area that we have worked and sacrificed to maintain. The house was originally built in 1950 by my husbands grandparents, the Mossbergs. And he also originally owner in the property that became Garland Circle and they bought property with a couple of other families to develop it as a neighborhood. And so he wanted that area to remain wooded. He wanted that area to remain as a family neighborhood. Thank you. MS. TRACY MOLNAR: I live 1452 Ridgedale Road. It's just one block over from Garland Circle. I live in the home, we've been there for three months now and I live there with my husband and our almost one year old son. My big concern is the screening process of the girls that will be residents there. I have a friend who works at Madison Center as a social worker and when I explained the situation to her, she said that in her experience, labels of non violent or non gang affiliated can really just kind of put on there. It's such a subjective thing, people put depending on what works for every situation. And since the Hope House girls would be actually screened by the Hope House Organization, that makes me concerned for my family and for my son. That's my big concern. MR. URBANSKI: Since there is no one else to speak we'll close the public hearing portion. We have 14 letters from people speaking in opposition to. We just got another one so now we have 15. The Halls on Garland Road, the Gates on Garland Circle, the Noetzels on Garland Circle, Huntington on Garland Road, Schmuhl on Garland Circle, Lerman on Ridgedale Lane, Nolan on Garland Road, Dennen on Garland Road, 26