Tommy asked in another thread and I thought I'd pass along the not-so-good news using the General car talk thread. Seems I've upset some engineers in the city planning department with my securing a building permit to construct a 40' by 60' "shop" on my unplatted 5 acres of land inside the city limits.... 
When I finally got the site levelled late July (after $5K worth of tree removal, grading, bringing in waste lime, some engineering costs, permits, and so forth -- boy, it really adds up quickly!) I shot the corners and then called the city engineers to make certain I was taking my measurements from the correct boundary markers. This was the guy who I submitted my permit application to wayyy back in April. He told me he forgot to ask me "Do you live on this property?". I told him "No", and then there's this big pause...... Then he says "We may have made a mistake in issuing this permit". About then I got a bit irked, but remained calm and collected. He suggested I discuss this with "my engineer" for the project. Like I had one....
So I went to a Civil Engineering group that does lot and subdivision development and presented him with my scenario. He is puzzled how they even issued the permit in the first place, and how they allowed it to be soooo large !!! Then he asks me why I would want to build a $20,000 "detached garage" on a $40,000 duplex lot. My answer was "because I can", which was apparently not a sound business answer.
Hell, I had no idea this land was worth that much all cut up into lots. Turns out that duplex lots have gone up in value since the bottoming of the stock market, and all the doctors in town are trying to figure out what to do with their ill-gotten cash (just kidding, for those of you out there who are upstanding members of the medical profession and/or tremendously wealthy and are looking for alternative investments
).
So I ask him to draft up a "best use" of the land given the existing zoning (it is currently a combination of duplexes and single family houses). This took a few weeks. He comes up with something like 8 duplex lots (including the footprint I intended to construct my shop on) and 5 single family building lots. He suggested I rent space elsewhere, or buy another tract of ground less valuable and build my shop there.....
So I am currently pursuing other options, including rezoning the existing tract for higher density, which oddly enough allows me to construct a "maintenance facility" (sounds like a shop to me!). But that would be on another part of the tract. Given the current zoning I am apparently not allowed to build a "detached garage" (that's the language I used to get the permit) if I in fact do not reside on that property.... And no, my wife is not prepared to move, as we have lived in our house for some 19 years now....
So, I am simultaneously pursuing subdivision planning while looking for a small parcel of land OUTSIDE THE CITY LIMITS (those bastards!) to build my shop. I did find a 2.5 acre piece not far away just last weekend, but it's tied up in probate court and not currently not for sale.
In short, things got complex, the city stepped in, and now engineers and lawyers got involved (that's another story unto itself). Seems the big rich subdivision next to me caught wind of my antics (to plan a small rental subdivision) and are concerned about "all that riff-raff" that might be driving through their streets lined with $350,000 houses. So their lawyer has contacted me informing me that they will fight any development that I might propose. Gee, I remember when their fancy subdivision was build just 5-6 years ago. It was a nice alfalfa field with trees dotting the 60 acres -- then it got flattened by bull dozers and all -- I mean every one -- of those trees was pushed over. And they are worryiing about li'l ol' me????
The saga continues. The way I figure it is that this has become soooo complex that I deserve to build AT LEAST THREE X-frame cars with "W" engines just for putting up with and enduring this torture. Wouldn't you agree? Plus at the cost of this development and construction, which I will manage and general contract (saving 15-20%), pouring money into a few 409s will seem like a drop in the bucket (I don't mean to be facetious). I am counting on my wife being so consumed with decision making that she won't see a few dollars going out the window for "automobile restoration".
Sorry to be so long winded, but the road is long and the load is heavy...
Cheers,
Tom K
When I finally got the site levelled late July (after $5K worth of tree removal, grading, bringing in waste lime, some engineering costs, permits, and so forth -- boy, it really adds up quickly!) I shot the corners and then called the city engineers to make certain I was taking my measurements from the correct boundary markers. This was the guy who I submitted my permit application to wayyy back in April. He told me he forgot to ask me "Do you live on this property?". I told him "No", and then there's this big pause...... Then he says "We may have made a mistake in issuing this permit". About then I got a bit irked, but remained calm and collected. He suggested I discuss this with "my engineer" for the project. Like I had one....
So I went to a Civil Engineering group that does lot and subdivision development and presented him with my scenario. He is puzzled how they even issued the permit in the first place, and how they allowed it to be soooo large !!! Then he asks me why I would want to build a $20,000 "detached garage" on a $40,000 duplex lot. My answer was "because I can", which was apparently not a sound business answer.
Hell, I had no idea this land was worth that much all cut up into lots. Turns out that duplex lots have gone up in value since the bottoming of the stock market, and all the doctors in town are trying to figure out what to do with their ill-gotten cash (just kidding, for those of you out there who are upstanding members of the medical profession and/or tremendously wealthy and are looking for alternative investments
). So I ask him to draft up a "best use" of the land given the existing zoning (it is currently a combination of duplexes and single family houses). This took a few weeks. He comes up with something like 8 duplex lots (including the footprint I intended to construct my shop on) and 5 single family building lots. He suggested I rent space elsewhere, or buy another tract of ground less valuable and build my shop there.....
So I am currently pursuing other options, including rezoning the existing tract for higher density, which oddly enough allows me to construct a "maintenance facility" (sounds like a shop to me!). But that would be on another part of the tract. Given the current zoning I am apparently not allowed to build a "detached garage" (that's the language I used to get the permit) if I in fact do not reside on that property.... And no, my wife is not prepared to move, as we have lived in our house for some 19 years now....
So, I am simultaneously pursuing subdivision planning while looking for a small parcel of land OUTSIDE THE CITY LIMITS (those bastards!) to build my shop. I did find a 2.5 acre piece not far away just last weekend, but it's tied up in probate court and not currently not for sale.
In short, things got complex, the city stepped in, and now engineers and lawyers got involved (that's another story unto itself
). Seems the big rich subdivision next to me caught wind of my antics (to plan a small rental subdivision) and are concerned about "all that riff-raff" that might be driving through their streets lined with $350,000 houses. So their lawyer has contacted me informing me that they will fight any development that I might propose. Gee, I remember when their fancy subdivision was build just 5-6 years ago. It was a nice alfalfa field with trees dotting the 60 acres -- then it got flattened by bull dozers and all -- I mean every one -- of those trees was pushed over. And they are worryiing about li'l ol' me????The saga continues. The way I figure it is that this has become soooo complex that I deserve to build AT LEAST THREE X-frame cars with "W" engines just for putting up with and enduring this torture. Wouldn't you agree? Plus at the cost of this development and construction, which I will manage and general contract (saving 15-20%), pouring money into a few 409s will seem like a drop in the bucket (I don't mean to be facetious). I am counting on my wife being so consumed with decision making that she won't see a few dollars going out the window for "automobile restoration".
Sorry to be so long winded, but the road is long and the load is heavy...
Cheers,
Tom K
: Look at some people being told they can't even park their own car in their own driveway! And it's only going to get worse too. It's sickening how our freedom/rights are going to hell in a handbag.
:evil
