Zoning Administrator Read Brodhead introduces the issues being considered by the Charlottesville Board of Zoning appeals in BZA hearing #0704001, April 19, 2007, Charlottesville City Hall, Basement Conference Room
(Brodhead) The applicant, Erik Wilke, is appealing the zoning determination which stated:
“A technical mistake resulted in parcels 56-109, 56-40.4a and 56-42.3 to lose their overlay zoning status as individually protected properties.”
In addition, the applicant feels that these parcels were inadvertently rezoned by act of City Council without any required notice to the property owners, neighbors or the public at large.
Background for this case. On December 22nd, 2006, Burgess Lane Properties submitted an application to Neighborhood Development Services to have a portion of tax map parcel 56-109 containing 0.278 acres rezoned to remove the historic overlay designation on this R1-S property. As staff began to process this application they realized that parcel 56-109 was in fact a separate parcel in 1993 when tax map parcel 56-40.4 was designated as an individually protected parcel. As NDS staff researched these parcels more deeply, they discovered that parcel 56-40.4 was subdivided and recorded in 1989 to create parcel 56-109. However, the tax maps were not updated to include the change because both the parcels were owned by the same property owner. Tax map, at the time, continued to show that parcel 56-40.4 stretched from East Market Street to the railroad tracks even though it was in fact two parcels.
In ’93 the Planning Commission voted to designate the dwelling located at 1512 East Market Street, located on parcel 56-40.4, as an Individually Protected Property. Our staff reviewed the minutes from this meeting and we also talked to former planning commissioners about the decision, the record is not clear on the exact acreage that was designated.
In ’01, parcel 56-109 was divided to create two additional parcels, 56-42.3 and 56-40.4a by the current owner of the property who bought it in ’96. The subdivision was recorded by the City Assessor’s office in ’01. The City Assessor’s office changed their tax maps in ’01 to reflect this subdivision including a 1989 subdivision parcel 56-40.4. Some of the earlier digital map books show the original parcel as an unsubdivided due to the fact that the City was in the process of transitioning from paper to digital maps.
On September 15, 2003, the current zoning ordinance was adopted by City Council. Prior to this City-wide adoption we were required by Virginia State Code section 15-.2-2204 to notify everyone in the City through a mass mailing. On this date, tax map fifty-six, parcel 40.4 was currently a separate parcel on the Assessor’s tax map and was thus named an Individually Protected Property. However parcels 56-109, 56-40.4a, and 56-42.3 were not on this list of historic properties prior to the adoption of the zoning ordinance on that date. Based on all this information given above, staff made the determination that the only current parcel, 56-40.4, and all the structures contained within this parcel are designated historic and thus subject to review by the BAR.
(O’Halloran) OK, thankyou. Any questions for Mr. Brodhead? That was, clear as a bell. (laughter from audience)