HomeMy WebLinkAboutHDC1985-002 Letter From Quapaw Quarter Association To Robert Atkinson 04/30/1986QUAPAW QUARTER ASSOCIATION
of historic Little Rock
April 30, 1986
Robert Atkinson
Office of Comprehensive Planning
City Hall
Markham at Broadway
Little Rock, Arkansas 72201
Dear Robert:
At the request of Sam Strauss, Jr., chairman of the Historic
District Commission, the Board of Directors of the Quapaw Quarter
Association again discussed the American Legion's application to
demolish the Sannoner House at 522 Rock Street and replace it with
a parking lot. The matter was considered at the QQA board meeting
on Monday, April 28.
The QQA board wishes the Association's position on the
matter to remain the same as expressed in my letter to you of
November 26, 1985 (a copy of which is enclosed for your convenience).
In a nutshell, the QQA will not oppose (but also will not endorse)
the demolition of the house because of its badly deteriorated
condition and long history as an eyesore and nuisance. However, the
Association does oppose the creation of another surface parking lot
in place of the house. We continue to believe the property should
be used for infill development in order to strengthen, rather than
weaken, the edge of the historic district.
On a related issue, I want to point out that the American
Legion's existing parking lot at 518 Rock (former site of the
Repetti Cottage) still is being used illegally for the repair of
automobiles. I drove by that parking lot shortly after noon today,
and I found two cars with their hoods up, obviously being worked on.
In addition, Kenny Scott, Zoning and Sign Enforcement
Chief for the city, has told me that Little Rock's landscape ordinance
was adopted in 1977. The American Legion's parking lot at 518 Rock
was constructed in 1981 (following the fire that destroyed the
Repetti Cottage in March 1981). Consequently, the lot obviously
was not in compliance with the landscape ordinance when it was built,
and it still is not in compliance.
1315 South Scott • P.O. Box 1104,9 Little Rock, Arkansas 72203 r 501-371-0075
Robert Atkinson
4/30/86
Page 2
The zoning and landscape violations that exist at 518 Rock
were pointed out at the December 5, 1985, Historic District
Commission hearing. As I recall, the representative of the
City Attorney's office who was present at that hearing was going
to report the violations. This evidently was not done, however,
because when I contacted Kenny Scott in February about the
violations, he was unaware of them. Since the violations still
exist, I hope that the Historic District Commission will do all it
can to urge the proper city authorities to take immediate action
to see that the violations are corrected.
Sincerely,
jj, ! Z 'ela�l
Cheryl; �'C ri ff i th Nichols
Executive Director
Enclosure
Robert Atkinson
11/26/85
Page 2
The site of the proposed parking lot in the 500 block of
Rock St. does differ from the site in the 600 block in that it is
not immediately adjacent to any historic buildings. It is, however,
directly across the street from three significant structures: the
Kempner House (521 Rock), the Narkinski Cottage (515 Rock), and the
Nash House (601 Rock). Any new development on the west side of the
500 block of Rock should meet the historic district's design
guidelines and enhance the -surroundings of the historic structures
in the immediate vicinity. It is the opinion of the QQA that a
parking lot cannot serve this role. Infill development in the form
of apartments or offices would be much preferable.
If it is possible for the Historic District Commission to
do so, we hope that the proposal for 522 Rock St. can be treated
as two separate issues: (1) demolition of the existing house, and
(2) creation of a parking lot. As I have previously stated, the
QQA will remain neutral on the demolition but opposes the issuance
of a Certificate of Appropriateness -for the construction of a
parking lot.
Sincerely,
Cheryl 0riffi Nichols
Execu ive Director
cc: Bill Hall, AHPP