...and the baseball saga continues...

[FriendsofAN44]

Clause in handbook won’t stop project


By JOHN T. EBERTH, The Times Herald 06/23/2005


OLEAN — South 26th Street residents hoped a clause in the St. Bonaventure University course catalog requiring unmarried students under the age of 21 to live on campus meant members of the university baseball team can’t move onto their street.
But university officials say that rule in the catalog hasn’t been enforced for more than 10 years.
A Maryland developer, Elmer Grap, has proposed establishing a 10-bedroom home for members of the baseball team at the end of South 26th Street in the vacant Valley View Nursing Home. Mr. Grap’s son is a member of the team. Residents of the dead-end street are fighting the project, arguing the college students will harm the quiet character of their neighborhood.
In the weeks since the project was announced, residents have scoured univeristy handbooks and catalogs and city and state zoning laws looking for a way to block it. They sent a copy of page 11 of the university catalog to The Times Herald Wednesday. A paragraph on page 11 reads: “All unmarried freshmen, sophomores and juniors, except those whose homes are within community distance of the university or who are 21 years of age, are required to live in one of the residence halls.”
David P. Ferguson, St. Bonaventure vice president for university relations, said the policy was abandoned before he joined the university and he’s not sure why. Mr. Ferguson said the university prefers that students live on campus.
“We encourage students to live on campus so they can partake in all the activities and services available on campus,” he said. “But that’s not a standard that has been enforced.”
He said unmarried students under the age of 21 have been allowed to live off campus in the past and the rule is unenforceable.
Mr. Grap was granted a building permit June 16 to begin renovations at the old nursing home by the Olean Code Enforcement Office. Several hours later Mayor William Quinlan issued a stop work order on the project and requested that the Olean Zoning Board of Appeals review Mr. Grap’s building application to determine if it follows city and state zoning laws.
Mr. Grap told The Times Herald he’s committed to the project and believes that his application follows the law.
“I’m going to stick with it. I’ve made a commitment to the students,” he said. “I just want it to be a quality place for the kids to live.”
He said once the residents see the improvements to the nursing home he has planned and get a chance to know members of the baseball team, their fears will pass.
Mr. Grap filed an application to renovate the nursing home as a single-family home. Deputy Fire Chief Christopher Young, head of city codes, said he issued a building permit to Mr. Grap because state zoning law allows single-family dwellings to be used as housing for unrelated college students. The mayor has asked the Zoning Board to review the definition of a single-family dwelling in zoning laws to see if college housing is actually allowed under the heading.
The Zoning Board will consider the issue tonight at 7:30 in Room 119 of the Municipal Building. The meeting is open to the public.
About 20 people live on South 26th now. Mr. Grap is proposing to put between 10 and 20 members of the baseball team in the home at the end of the street.
Former Olean police chief Patrick Brandow and his wife, Nancy, have lived on South 26th Street since 1995. Mr. Brandow said regardless of how good the students are, doubling the number of residents on a dead-end street will change the character of the neighborhood.
“When you add 20 people to a street with 20 residents, isn’t that an adverse impact?” he said. “It will increase traffic on the street and add uncontrolled youth to the neighborhood. I’m not saying they’re bad kids, but kids without parental control are just that.”
Mr. Brandow said he and his neighbors are fighting to protect a neighborhood atmosphere they’ve worked hard to create.
“Everything you spend your life developing, the peace and enjoyment of your home is at risk,” he said. “To think that it can be taken away from you over the interpretation of a definition is frightening.”

[Friar]

I did attend the city of Olean's Zoning Board meeting last night. The Zoning Board ruled in favor of the South 26th Street residents. They cited that what they know of the project Mr. Grap's proposal does not fit the definition of a single-family dwelling that it sounds more like a boarding house. I am happy for the residents but according to Mr. Grap he is going to continue his efforts.

[JS]

I'm glad that Mr. Grap is fighting this. Not a big surprise that the Olean Zoning Board ruled this way, most things in that area seem to be out of touch with recent trends. As will be seen, this ruling is against recent case law both in NY and in other states. This ruling will be reversed, Courts don't like limiting where people can live and who they can live with. I loved the quote from the former Police Chief, "I’m not saying they’re bad kids, but kids without parental control are just that.” Okay, and I'm not saying that retired police chiefs are ignorant and senile, but people who make allegations about people they don't know are just that. Keep fighting, Mr. Grap....these kids have a right to live in that house.

[FriendsofAN44]

From Friday's Times Herald:

OLEAN — South 26th Street residents applauded Thursday after the Olean Zoning Board of Appeals decided a Maryland developer shouldn’t have been granted a permit to renovate an old nursing home on their street for use by St. Bonaventure University baseball players.
The residents began clapping after Zoning Board Chairwoman LaDorna Fox asked if they were happy with the board’s unanimous 7-0 vote.
The Zoning Board of Appeals ruled that the Olean Code Enforcement office erred when it issued a permit to renovate the home June 16. The permit was given to Maryland real estate developer Elmer Grap, who plans to turn the vacant Valley View Nursing Home at 145 S. 26th St. into a single-family home for 10 to 20 St. Bonaventure University baseball players. Mr. Grap’s son is a member of the baseball team.
South 26th is a dead-end street with about 20 residents. Homeowners are concerned that by potentially doubling the occupancy on the street Mr. Grap’s project would jeopardize the character of their quiet neighborhood.
Olean Deputy Fire Chief Christopher Young, head of code enforcement, issued the permit based on his interpretation of the city and state zoning laws. As previously reported, he said state law allows a property designated as a single-family home to be used for college housing.
However, hours after Mr. Young issued the permit Olean Mayor William G. Quinlan issued a temporary stop order. Mayor Quinlan asked the Zoning Board to review the permit.
On Thursday the board said the project did not meet the single-family dwelling definition in the city zoning law. Further, the board stated the proposal was closer to the definition of a boarding house with shared facilities like kitchens and bathrooms.
But, boarding houses in Olean can only have three to six rooms. Because Mr. Grap is proposing at least 10 rooms for university baseball players, he would need a variance, Mrs. Fox said.
“If they still want to do this they can ask for a use variance,” she said. “In that case it would come back to the Zoning Board and we would set a public hearing and then decide on the application for a variance.”
She said a variance would be needed because the zoning on South 26th doesn’t allow for boarding houses. A use variance would have to be approved by the Zoning Board.
After Thursday’s meeting, Mr. Grap said he would sit down with his lawyer, Carl Vahl of Olean, to decide how to pursue the project. Mr. Grap said he would not give up and declined to comment further.
His wife, Lynn Grap, asked residents not to assume that college students would come into the neighborhood and trash the area. Mrs. Grap said she expects the university ballplayers, including her son, to be good neighbors, like they are in their own hometowns.
Those residents who attended the meeting vowed to continue fighting the project.