Rose Garden Resident
News
Neighbors don't like plan to build 2 houses while remodeling Colonial
By Mary Gottschalk
Close to 40 Rose Garden area residents turned out for the Nov. 16 community meeting on a proposal to move and restore a historic home at 744 Morse St. and construct two new homes alongside it.
A partnership of brothers David and Clyde LeBaron and Mark DeMattei finalized purchase of the 1920 eclectic Colonial Revival estate on Morse, between Naglee Avenue and Emory Street, two months ago for $1.2 million.
David LeBaron told the group he and his partners are also area residents and committed to restoring the house.
"It will cost us in excess of $1.2 million to restore the home," he said, adding that to make the purchase and restoration financially feasible, they need to move the Colonial and construct two new homes.
They have also entered into an agreement with the Central YMCA to trade a parcel of land the nonprofit now owns adjacent to 744 Morse for the back part of their lot. The trade would give the YMCA 22 new onsite parking places and the trio the land they need to complete their building plans.
Most neighbors expressed the wish that the house be restored without moving it and only one additional house be built. They also expressed distress at the loss of trees, particularly a large redwood and a ponderosa pine.
LeBaron told them that it isn't financially feasible to build only one new house.
In terms of trees, he said some of the existing trees are seizing the foundation of the home, and others affect the adjacent property. He said he's waiting for an arborist's report, but the trio's current request is to remove 12 ordinance-size trees.
He pointed out that other developers bidding on the property had intended to demolish the Colonial and construct a court home project similar to the one next to Antonella's Ristorante on Naglee Avenue.
When some expressed skepticism, Erin Morris of the San Jose Planning Department confirmed, "There have been lots and lots of speculative inquiries on demolishing the structure and asking how many units could be built on that lot."
Several speakers questioned the size and design of the two new houses.
One speaker characterized the proposal as "like taking Audrey Hepburn and replacing her with Janet Jackson."
The existing house is 3,250 square feet and if moved will sit on a 130-foot-by-61.35-foot lot.
The two proposed houses are both two stories with four bedrooms and three baths, each about 3,000 square feet. Their lots would be 130 feet by 59 feet and 130 feet by 57.25 feet, with approximately 13 feet between the houses.
LeBaron said the new lots "are 50 percent greater than the city's minimum requirements."
It was suggested the new homes be designed in different styles, such as making one a Tudor and the other a Craftsman to reflect the neighborhood's character and variety.
Sanhita Mallick, project manager for the city, said she would take community comments into consideration in preparing the staff report and recommendation on the project for the planning commission.
The planning commission will hold another public meeting and then make a recommendation to the city council. The council will hear additional public comment and then make a final, binding decision.
Mallick encouraged interested parties to express their opinions on the project in writing to her for inclusion in her final report. Email sanhita.mallick@sanjoseca.gov or call 408.535.7836.
