[LCN Newscast] Infill Housing Survey, Due Jul 26

[newscast@lists.lakeclaire.org]

Dear Atlanta Residents:

The Infill Housing Task Force is asking for your help.

We need your help in identifying a section of a street(s) in your
community or the City of Atlanta where you feel infill
development has been:

In-Scale:  Added appropriately and blends in with the surrounding
properties

Out-of-Scale:  Added inappropriately -- dwarfs the surrounding
properties and/or harms the appearance of the street.

We would like to look both at streets where infill houses are
APPROPRIATE and at those streets where infill houses are NOT
APPROPRIATE.

I have enclosed a form (below) for you to use.  Please send your
recommendations to me by July 26th.

Please feel free to call me [Mary Norwood] at 404-330-6302 with
any questions.  Thank you for your help.

BACKGROUND:

City Council created an Infill Task Force on February 3, 2003 to
study the impact of out-of-scale infill housing on neighborhoods
in the City of Atlanta.

Infill housing is the addition of one or more houses (new or
renovated) constructed in an established neighborhood.  Some
neighborhoods in our City have expressed dissatisfaction with
massive out-of-scale structures being built that completely
ignore the character of the existing neighborhood.  Other
neighborhoods are concerned with duplexes and inferior housing
stock that is plaguing their revitalization efforts.

After several months of work discussing many technical issues--
including lot coverage, setbacks, height, and floor area ratios--
we decided in order to assess the issue accurately and determine
what should be regulated, we needed to conduct field work.  Karen
Huebner, Executive Director of the Urban Design Commission,
suggested we contact Dr. Cheryl Contant, Director of City and
Regional Planning, College of Architecture at Georgia Tech, which
we did.  Dr. Contant and Dr. Steve French, Director for the
Center for Geographic Information Systems, have agreed to assist
with this project and presented a proposal to the Infill Task
Force on Thursday, July 10th.

Drs. Contant and French will oversee Georgia Tech students, who
will go into Atlanta neighborhoods and measure "in scale" and
"out of scale" infill houses.  This will enable the Task Force to
obtain statistical data on which elements of infill development
may need to be regulated.  Dr. Contant's project could establish
a national precedent in handling this difficult, subjective
issue!

Thanks so much for your help!

Sincerely,

Mary Norwood

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I WOULD LIKE THE INFILL HOUSING TASK FORCE TO ANALYZE:

1. Name of Street: ______________________________________________

Please look at the section of this Street that is between:

__________________________________and____________________________

Neighborhood:____________________________________________________

NPU: _______________ Zip CODE: _________________________

I believe this street has _____ in-scale ______ out-of-scale
infill.

2. Name of Street: ______________________________________________

Please look at the section of this Street that is between:

__________________________________and____________________________

Neighborhood:____________________________________________________

NPU: _______________ Zip CODE: _________________________

I believe this street has _____ in-scale ______ out-of-scale
infill.

3. Name of Street: ______________________________________________

Please look at the section of this Street that is between:

________________________________and______________________________

Neighborhood:____________________________________________________

NPU: _______________ Zip CODE: _________________________

I believe this street has _____ in-scale ______ out-of-scale
infill.

SUBMITTED BY:____________________________________________________

PHONE:  _______________________

E-MAIL:_____________________________

Please return this form to Mary Norwood by July 26:
mnorwood@atlantaga.gov
Fax:  404-658-6156
55 Trinity Ave, SW 30303


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