HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-06-19 Public Comment - S. Huber - HRDC Warming Center SiteFrom:Seph Huber
To:Sarah Rosenberg; Agenda
Subject:HRDC Application
Date:Wednesday, November 06, 2019 4:37:50 PM
Hello Sarah:
I’m writing to express my opposition to the Special Use Permit requested by the HRDC for the
proposed warming shelter in the Figgins subdivision.
In particular, I’m dismayed by the lack of information from HRDC and the brief period allowed
for comment. 15 days seems like a very short time indeed to disseminate information for a
proposal to host a transient population of up to 36 people per night in a neighborhood zoned
for single family housing.
Our neighbors who live in close proximity to the shelter will clearly be very adversely affected.
I’m sure by now you will have received plenty of comment on the 7AM and 7PM shuttles, the
police call outs (an average of twice per week at the other shelter) the smoking areas, the
proximity to both Meadowlark Elementary and Sacajawea Middle Schools, and the sheer folly
of stuffing 36 people into a single family house. We have only 4 in our house and at times it’s
almost unbearable.
Residents who purchased houses in this neighborhood did so with the expectation that they
were buying a home in an area zoned for single family housing. It may have been a stretch for
some, but the ability to have your children walk to school and to enjoy relative peace and
quiet made the sacrifice worthwhile.
Now there is a proposal to take away the benefits of R-1 zoning from our neighbors. To
arbitrarily take away this value from them strikes me as a very dangerous precedent. One that
could – or should – happen only under the most extreme circumstances. I’m sympathetic to
the need, but this is clearly not the solution. I’d actually like to know what the criteria are for a
SUP permit, but a quick web search revealed not much, and since it’s Nov 6 at 4:45 PM I’m out
of time. Thank you for your consideration.
Yours sincerely,
Joseph Huber
-- 406.599.5930