PAPERLESS PACKET 5-15-19

CITY OF DOVER BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT AGENDA Wednesday, May 15, 2019 at 9:00 AM City Hall, Council Chambers 15 Loockerman Plaza, Dover, Delaware ROLL CALL APPROVAL OF AGENDA APPROVAL OF MINUTES of April 17, 2019 Meeting COMMUNICATIONS & REPORTS 1. Reminder: The next Board of Adjustment regular meeting is scheduled for June 19, 2019 at 9:00am in the City Council Chambers. NEW BUSINESS Applicant #V-19-05 15 South New Street. Sandra Appling has requested a variance from the requirements of the Zoning Ordinance, Article 3 §2.1 pertaining to permitted dwelling unit types in the RG-1 (General Residence) Zone, and the Zoning Ordinance, Article 7 §1.13 related to nonconforming buildings and uses, in order to reestablish the use of the structure on the property as a two-family dwelling unit. The structure’s previous legal nonconforming status lapsed after the two-family dwelling remained vacant for over a year. Subject property is zoned RG-1 (General Residence Zone). Tax Parcel: ED-05-077.05-03-13.00- 000. The owner of record is Welcome Home Properties LLC. ADJOURN 29 Del. C. § 10004(e)(2) THE AGENDA ITEMS MAY NOT BE CONSIDERED IN SEQUENCE. THIS AGENDA IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE TO INCLUDE THE ADDITION OR THE DELETION OF ITEMS, INCLUDING EXECUTIVE SESSIONS.

CITY OF DOVER BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MINUTES April 17, 2019 A Regular Meeting of the City of Dover Board of Adjustment was held on Wednesday, April 17, 2019 at 9:00 A.M. with Chairman Sheth presiding. Members present were Chairman Sheth, Mr. Keller, Mr. Hufnal, Colonel Ericson and Mr. Senato. Staff members present were Mr. Swierczek, Mr. Hugg, City Solicitor Mr. Rodriguez, and Mrs. Savage-Purnell. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Mr. Hufnal moved to approve the agenda as submitted. The motion was seconded by Mr. Senato and unanimously carried 5-0. APPROVAL OF THE REGULAR BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MEETING MINUTES OF MARCH 20, 2019 Mr. Keller moved to approve the meeting minutes of March 20, 2019 with the necessary corrections. The motion was seconded by Mr. Senato and unanimously carried 5-0. OPENING REMARKS CONCERNING APPLICATIONS Mr. Dave Hugg, Planning Director stated that the meeting today will be conducted in accordance with the Agenda. There is one (1) application on the agenda under New Business. Each Application file will be read, and the floor will be opened for questions of the applicant by the Board and for public testimony. If the Board needs to consult the City Solicitor, they will recess to discuss legal matters. If the applicant must leave, they can contact the Planning Office at 736-7196 to learn of the Board’s decision. A formal notice of the decision will be mailed to the applicants. Approved variances expire after one year if the approved project has not commenced. All public notice for the new applications on this agenda was completed in accordance with Code requirements. The meeting agenda was posted in accordance with Freedom of Information Act requirements. COMMUNICATIONS & REPORTS The next Board of Adjustment regular meeting is scheduled for May 15, 2019 at 9:00am in the City Council Chambers. NEW BUSINESS Applicant #V-19-04 223 and 225 West Division Street. NCALL has requested a variance from the requirements of the Zoning Ordinance, Article 4 §4.14 pertaining to the bulk standards of the C-1A (Limited Commercial Zone). Specifically, the applicants seek to increase the maximum permitted number of stories from two to three, and increase the maximum height permitted in feet from 30 feet to 34 feet. The variances are being requested so that a new 3-story office building may be built on both parcels that are to be consolidated. The new building will be utilizing the existing setbacks

CITY OF DOVER BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT APRIL 17, 2019 that currently exist on both parcels. Subject properties are zoned C-1A (Limited Commercial Zone). Tax Parcels: ED-05-076.08-05-28.00-000 and ED-05-076.08-05-29.00-000. The owner of record for both properties is NCALL. Exhibits for the Record: Staff Report, Zoning Exhibit, and statement and plans submitted by the applicant. Legal Notice was published in the Delaware State News on April 7, 2019. The public was notified in accordance with regulations. Chairman Sheth questioned if there was any member present who had a conflict of interest and there was none. Mr. Swierczek gave a summary presentation of the Variance Application Request to increase the maximum permitted number of stories from two to three, and increase the maximum height permitted in feet from 30 feet to 34 feet for a new 3-story office building to be built on both parcels that are to be consolidated. Representative: Ms. Karen Speakman, NCALL’s Executive Director; Mr. Kevin Wilson, Architect; Ms. Patricia Kelleher, NCALL’s Real Estate Development Director. Ms. Speakman was sworn in by Mr. Rodriguez. Ms. Speakman handed out the most recent year-end report (NCALL Research, Inc. Annual Report 2018). She testified that NCALL has been in business in Dover since 1976. We are a housing and community development organization. We help develop affordable housing throughout the State of Delaware and the Delmarva Peninsula. She thinks they are mostly known for their pre-purchase Housing Counseling Program where we help first-time home buyers and helped over 8700 families in Delaware buy a house and understand the process. They also help families with Foreclosure Prevention and Financial Coaching. They then in turn help non-profits in terms of developing apartment complexes. At the current time, they are doing a review at the Ministry of Caring in Wilmington to develop the Cathedral of St. John into the Village of St. Johns for senior citizens. The Felician Sisters of North America near Newark (Our Lady of Grace Village) will develop sixty (60) family rental housing units. We also have a loan fund that consist of $24 million that lends to other non-profits to do affordable housing and community facilities. We have helped charter schools like the First Military Academy, health centers, Legal Aid’s office buildings and more. They have a wide variety of what they do. As the lead agency, they have been very much involved in Restoring Central Dover. The traffic boxes downtown is a small example of their art project. At the current time 22 houses have been built through NCALL, Habitat for Humanity, and a few other developers. So, you now have 22 new homeowners in Central Dover. There are four (4) new houses that are currently being constructed. There are a variety of programs within Restoring Central Dover with a steering committee made up of over 20 different organizations and people. One recent key program called the Launcher Program which consists of 13 new entrepreneurs who graduated last fall and the other night we had 21 new entrepreneurs who graduated. They are looking to do business in Dover as part of their criteria to be in the program. Several of them have started businesses already and we are looking for a few more. We are bursting at our seams at the recent office on Saulsbury Road and what we are envisioning with the new building other than more space is we thought we should put our money where our mouth is in 2

CITY OF DOVER BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT APRIL 17, 2019 terms of Restoring Central Dover. We have purchased these two (2) properties and look to build a 3-story building. Part of the discussion with this building is the final MOU with Delaware State University to place a small incubator into this building. It will be sort of an interesting progress for our Launcher graduates to move into this incubator so that they can really start their business plan and set things into motion for their businesses as well as new ones. We feel that we will be a community-based incubator. We hope to pull people from the community into this and hopefully have them start new businesses. We will also place some of our Staff in the new building including Restoring Central Dover Staff. Habitat for Humanity would also like to use the building to meet with families during the interview process. Mr. Kevin Wilson was sworn in by Mr. Rodriguez. Mr. Wilson testified that when he first met with Ms. Speakman and Ms. Kelleher, they realized very quickly that the site is very limited in terms of the area and size and what their needs way far exceeded what would be allowable based on the present zoning. Part of the reason is we wanted to get off-street parking spaces. In order to do that there is a rear alley (noted on the Site Plan) that really encroached into what would otherwise be a part of the building area on the ground floor. In doing that (parking) the ground floor was reduced by roughly 1000-feet from what it would be on the upper floors. When you add in the fact that you have a stair towers and elevator, the usable area on the ground floor is greatly restricted. That is what lead us to look at a third floor. When he walked and looked around the neighborhood it seemed as if there were a lot of buildings that occupied third floors whether it was within a roof as part of a mansard or just in the attic; you could see that they were using the upper floor. Several blocks away there is a building that is owned by Wesley College that has a mansard and is really a nice-looking building. You see the visual scale of the top floor is reduced because of the mansard. What we want to do here is take a 3-story building and reduce the aesthetic with the top floor as being a mansard, so it gives the appearance of a 2-story building with some usable space in the attic. That pushes the third floor in a few feet around all four sides but still creates a fair amount of useable square footage on that upper floor. He stated that they wanted to use an orange-red brick like Wesley College and his rendering is close. The intent is to use a colonial red brick on this building. In summary, we picked up a lot of architectural details in the neighborhood. We think that it is consistent with the massing and size of the other surrounding buildings and we think that it would be appropriate for the neighborhood. Chairman Sheth stated that it was a nice-looking building. Colonel Ericson questioned if the variance application was disapproved what affect it would have on this project. Mr. Wilson replied that they would loose about 3000 square feet. It would also reduce the usable floor area by a large percentage. Colonel Ericson questioned if there was a chance the project would not go forward if what was previously mentioned did not occur. Ms. Speakman replied it would definitely affect the feasibility of the property in terms of how to rent it out and pay for it. Without the third floor, it would be very hard for her to make it work. 3

CITY OF DOVER BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT APRIL 17, 2019 Colonel Ericson mentioned one of the criteria is if there is a hardship or Exceptional Practical Difficulty. We like to look at the project in light of the Zoning; the Board likes to stick with the Zoning most times unless it is shown that there would be a definite hardship. If we were to approve the variance without stating that this is a unique property for a unique use, then the Board approval would affect all the units near that area. Ms. Speakman stated that it would cause an Exceptional Practical Difficulty. At the current time the project is being priced out around $2 million. We are also building to a LEED Silver standard to ensure energy efficiency. Without the third floor she honestly does not think they could do the project. Mr. Hufnal mentioned that it is a great improvement for that area. He saw the community preference survey that was done, and it showed that the survey participants would prefer to see three or four-story buildings in the Division Street corridor. Also, the height of the building is in keeping with the goals of the plan. Mr. Senato questioned if the third floor would be used for office space. Ms. Speakman replied yes. Chairman Sheth questioned if their current building was located on Saulsbury Road. Ms. Speakman replied yes. Ms. Speakman mentioned that they hope the project will be a catalyst for Division Street. We hope that it will encourage other owners along the street to improve their properties and/or develop some programs for the streetscape improvements. She thinks that the project will make a difference. Mr. Keller questioned if the third floor would be fixed office space for a rental or a floating in and out of office usage space. Ms. Speakman replied at the current time, the incubator will be on the second floor and the third floor will be available to expand with some of the businesses into other spaces as well as NCALL and Habitat for Humanity will be using the space. Mr. Keller questioned if it was some sort of on-call usage/privilege on those areas or is it a fixed rental space. Ms. Speakman replied eventually it would be fixed rental space, but it can be used as needed. Ms. Patricia Kelleher was sworn in by Mr. Rodriguez. Ms. Kelleher replied to the above question that in their discussion with Delaware State University at this point want to rent the second floor for the incubator. As the discussions have proceeded, they are wondering if they are going to need the third floor as well due to a need for more space. If Delaware State University does not use the space, they will look for other businesses to take on that space. They will have some debt associated with the project. Although they are doing their very best to raise all the funds regarding the capital piece, they will have to service that debt through rental. To make the project feasible they need the third floor. Chairman Sheth opened the public hearing. 4

CITY OF DOVER BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT APRIL 17, 2019 Chairman Sheth closed the public hearing after seeing no one wishing to speak. Chairman Sheth questioned if there was any additional correspondence for the record. Mr. Swierczek mentioned that a member of the public called and expressed concern about the setbacks that are allowed in the Zoning. They mentioned they would attend the meeting today, but no one showed up. Mr. Senato moved to approve variance application V-19-04 for the three story and the 34 feet building height. If the variance was not approved there would be a definite hardship on the parties. The applicant is doing a great deed to improve the area. It is also within keeping of the area and improving the area itself. The motion was seconded by Mr. Hufnal. The motion unanimously carried 5-0. The meeting was adjourned by Mr. Senato and seconded by Mr. Colonel Ericson at 9:31 A.M. Sincerely, Maretta Savage-Purnell Secretary 5

City of Dover Board of Adjustment May 15, 2019 V-19-05 Location: 15 South New Street, Dover DE Applicant: Sandra E. Appling Owner: Welcome Home Properties LLC Tax Parcel: ED-05-077.05-03-13.00-000 Application Date: April 10, 2019 Present Zoning: RG-1 (General Residence Zone) Present Use: Vacant Residential Structure Reviewed By: Julian Swierczek Variance Type: Use Variance Variance Requested: Allow for the reestablishment of a nonconforming use after one year. Project Description: The applicant is requesting a variance from the Zoning Ordinance of Article 7, Section 1.13 Nonconforming buildings and uses, and of Article 3, Section 2.11 General residence zones (RG-1 and RG-2), to allow the reestablishment of a nonconforming use after the one year time frame has elapsed, that use being a two-family dwelling. Adjacent Land Uses The properties to the north, south, east, and across South New Street to the west are zoned RG-1 (General Residence Zone). Adjacent uses in the RG-1 zone include residential uses to the west, south and east and vacant land immediately to the north.

V-19-05 Lands of Welcome Home Properties LLC at 15 South New Street Board of Adjustment Report Page 2 of 7 General Information The appearance of the structure suggests that the property was originally a one-family dwelling that was converted at some time in the past to a two-unit (two-family) dwelling. The property had a Rental Dwelling Permit noting two units from 1998 through 2018. The Rental Dwelling Permit on the property expired on January 31, 2018 and was not renewed. The City of Dover declared the property vacant on April 3, 2018. The current owners purchased the property on December 26, 2018, with the aim of renovating the two units and consequently marketing it as a two-unit property to rent out. They were not aware that the zoning of the property does not permit the two unit dwelling, nor were they aware of the Zoning Ordinance that does not allow a non-conforming use to be maintained after being discontinued for a period of one-year. The one-year timeframe allowed to re- establish the non-conforming use has subsequently expired on January 31, 2019 while the applicants were still doing renovation work. It is only when the applicants came to the City for a new Rental Dwelling Permit that this issue arose. The applicants are now seeking a Use Variance as again, they were not aware of the restriction on their property in Code, and purchased this building fully expecting to be able to continue its use as a two-unit residential building. Code Citation The City of Dover Code describes the parameters under which non-conforming uses are permitted, as well as when their legal non-conforming status is discontinued and on what grounds in Article 7: Article 7 Section 1 Nonconforming buildings and uses 1.1 Any nonconforming use, except those nonconforming uses specified in [sub]section 1.5, may be continued indefinitely, but: 1.11 Shall not be enlarged, extended, reconstructed or placed on a different portion of the lot or parcel of land occupied by such uses on the effective date of this ordinance, nor shall any external evidence of such use such as traffic, noise, vibration, smoke, dust, odor, heat or glare be increased by any means whatsoever; or 1.12 Shall not be changed to another nonconforming use without a special permit from the board of adjustment, and then only to a use which, in the opinion of said board, is of the same or a more restricted nature; or 1.13 Shall not be reestablished if such use has been discontinued for any reason for a period of one year or more, or has been changed to, or replaced by, a conforming use. Intent to resume a nonconforming use shall not confer the right to do so. As the legal non-conforming status of the property is therefore no longer permitted under Code, the property must now be compliant with the permitted uses and regulations for the RG-1 zone as found in Article 3 of the zoning Ordinance: Article 3 Section 2 General residence zones (RG-1 and RG-2) 2.1 Uses permitted. In a general residence zone, no building or premises shall be used, and no building or part of a building shall be erected, which is arranged, intended, or designed to be used, in whole or in part, for any purpose, except the following: 2.11 Any use permitted in one-family residence zones.

V-19-05 Lands of Welcome Home Properties LLC at 15 South New Street Board of Adjustment Report Page 3 of 7 2.12 Garden apartments limited to placement within the RG-2 district only. Review Standard for a Use Variance The Zoning Ordinance, Article 9, §2 dictates the specific powers and duties of the Board of Adjustment with regard to granting variances. Specifically the Board must determine: 2.1 Variance – The board shall have the authority to authorize variances from provisions of the zoning ordinance that are not contrary to public interest where the board determines that a literal interpretation of the zoning ordinance would result in undue hardship or exceptional practical difficulties to the applicant. In granting variances, the board shall determine that the spirit of the zoning ordinance is observed and substantial justice done. 2.12 Use Variance. A variance shall be considered a use variance if it would permit a use of the subject property that would otherwise not be permitted on the subject property. In considering a request for a use variance, the board shall determine that the following criteria exist and document them in their findings of fact: (a) That there are physical conditions applying to the land or building for which the variance is sought, which conditions are peculiar to such land or building, and have not resulted from any act of the applicant or any predecessor in title; and (b) That the aforesaid circumstances or conditions are such that the strict application of the provisions of this ordinance would deprive the applicant of all reasonable use of such land or building and the granting of the variance is necessary for the reasonable use of the land or building, and that the variance as granted by the board is the minimum variance that will accomplish this purpose; and (c) That the granting of the variance under such conditions as the board may deem necessary or desirable to apply thereto will be in harmony with the general purpose and intent of this ordinance, will not represent a radical departure therefrom, will not be injurious to the neighborhood, will not change the character thereof and will not be otherwise detrimental to the public welfare. Review of Application As a part of the application, the applicant was asked to state how the requested variance relates to the above three criteria. The applicant’s responses are provided below, along with a staff assessment of the application in accordance with the required criteria. 1. That there are physical conditions applying to the land or building for which the variance is sought, which conditions are peculiar to such land or building, and have not resulted from any act of the applicant or any predecessor in title. Applicant Response: - It was advertised for sale as a unique 2-unit property in downtown Dover. - Unit #1 has a kitchen, bathroom, living room, two bedrooms possibly three, electric heater, electric hot water heater, electric furnace, electric meter and separate entrance. - Unit #2 has a kitchen, bathroom, living room, two bedrooms, gas heater, gas hot water heater, electric meter and separate entrance

V-19-05 Lands of Welcome Home Properties LLC at 15 South New Street Board of Adjustment Report Page 4 of 7 Staff Response: The appearance of the building suggests it was originally constructed as a one family detached dwelling and at a later unknown date converted into more than one unit. The house was purchased by the applicants as a two-unit structure. The building held a Rental Dwelling Permit for two dwelling units since at least 1998. The structure is physically divided into two dwelling units and was marketed as such to the applicant. The current non-conformity is not the result of improvements the applicant has done to the property, as they purchased it as a two-unit building. The allowable uses in the RG-1 zone has been amended over the years and currently the allowable uses do not include two units. A rear addition was added to the building with Permit #08-2376 associated with a Conditional Use C-08-02 to operate the first floor as a philanthropic use as an Outreach Center. Under Application C-08-02, the Planning Commission granted the application with the condition that the first floor was not to allow people to live in the first floor outreach center. This use appears to have operated until at least 2015. The building was first declared vacant in 2017, after which point it was sold to a bank. The Rental Dwelling Permit allowing for two units expired on January 31, 2019, and the building declared vacant again on April 3, 2018. 2. That the aforesaid circumstances or conditions are such that the strict application of the provisions of this ordinance would deprive the applicant of all reasonable use of such land or building and the granting of the variance is necessary for the reasonable use of the land or building, and that the variance as granted by the board is the minimum variance that will accomplish this purpose. Applicant Response: - Investing in this property with the initial knowledge of it being a two-unit house, renovating Unit #2 and now realizing that the property had lost its conforming status would be a financial hardship based on our business purpose and budget. - Our business goal is to provide affordable housing and with a two-unit house we would be able to accommodate two families and our budget would allow us to maintain the property in good condition and hopefully add to the revitalization of the community. Staff Response: The applicant must demonstrate that the use variance is necessary, demonstrating that applying the provisions of the ordinance would deprive the applicant of all reasonable use of such land or building. The variance granted must be the minimum variance that would accomplish reasonable use of the building. The Applicant has communicated to the City that in order to finance their renovations and maintain their property to a high standard, they would need to have the use of the second unit re-established to make the investment financially viable. They are not asking to increase the number of units from what had already been established

V-19-05 Lands of Welcome Home Properties LLC at 15 South New Street Board of Adjustment Report Page 5 of 7 over at least the past two decades and the costs associated with making the building compliant with the Code would make the project cost prohibitive to the Applicant. Staff again notes that RG-1 permits all uses allowed in the one-family residence zones, which includes one-family detached dwellings, not to exceed one such dwelling per lot. 3. That the granting of the variance under such conditions as the board may deem necessary or desirable to apply thereto will be in harmony with the general purpose and intent of this ordinance, will not represent a radical departure therefrom, will not be injurious to the neighborhood, will not change the character thereof and will not be otherwise detrimental to the public welfare. Applicant Response: - There are two buildings next to ours and two across that are duplex houses. - New Hope Housing II on 30 south New Street is an apartment complex with a total of 22 Units. - House of Pride is also located on South New Street which I believe has multiple dwelling houses. - At the end of South New Street is another 2-unit house, 144A and 144B. Staff Response: The granting of the requested variance would not be in harmony with the general purpose and intent of the Zoning Ordinance. The RG-1 zone permits single-family detached dwellings as well as single-family semi-detached (duplex) and attached (townhouse) dwellings as conditional uses. Over time, amendment to the Zoning Ordinance have been designed to provide for attrition of multi-family dwellings in the RG-1 zone, of which this two-family conversion is an example. The proliferation of such conversions has over the long term been injurious to neighborhoods in and near downtown, leading to changes to the RG-1 zone to disallow them. However, Staff notes that the applicants are seeking to invest in rehabilitating a previously vacant and neglected property to provide quality housing to low-income tenants. This neighborhood is one that has long since struggled and such an investment would do much to improve its overall character without causing harm to the character of the neighborhood. The neighborhood already contains several multiple-dwelling unit structures as well as one apartment building. While the zoning does not call for the allowance of multiple dwelling units in the RG- 1 zone, it does so with the aim of improving the housing stock of such neighborhoods, which this investment would accomplish. Variance Recommendation: Staff notes that the standard for a use variance is different and more stringent than the standard for an area variance, as the applicant must demonstrate that the provisions of the ordinance would deprive the applicant of all reasonable use of the land. Additionally, the variance granted

V-19-05 Lands of Welcome Home Properties LLC at 15 South New Street Board of Adjustment Report Page 6 of 7 must be the minimum variance that would accomplish this purpose. Given these factors, staff recommends approval of the use variance to reinstate the two-family dwelling unit status as a non-conforming use for reasons as follows: • The property had been in use as a two-unit dwelling structure since at least 1998 and lost the legal non-conforming status to continue as such only in January, 2019. The Rental Dwelling Permit expired in January of 2018, the building was ultimately declared vacant by the City in April of 2018 and sold to the Applicants in December of 2018. The applicants purchased the property 11-months into the one-year time period provided for to continue the non-conforming use and only lost it because they were still amid renovations (which did not require permits with the City) when the one-year time period ran out. The property had the status as a multiple dwelling- unit structure previously established and it was consequently marketed to them as such when they purchased it with the intent of rehabbing the two units and then renting them out again. • The variance requested is the minimum variance necessary to provide for reasonable use of the land. The property was used as a multiple-unit dwelling prior to it losing its legal non-conforming status. The applicant is not proposing to increase upon what had already been established, but rather to keep the two dwelling units already in place. This would be necessary to make the project financially viable to the applicants. • The requested variance for the restoration of a multiple (two unit) dwelling-unit structure is not in line with the intent of the zoning for the property. However, several of the neighboring properties are similarly established as multiple unit dwellings and there is an apartment building immediately across the street with as many as 22 units. The applicant is in line with the intent of the zoning in that they are making an investment to improve the quality of the housing stock in the neighborhood which has otherwise struggled with years of neglect. • The Applicant had purchased the structure only one month prior to the expiration of the one-year allotted by Code to continue the legal non-conforming status of the property and had sought to re-establish a Rental Dwelling Unit Permit only one- month after the expiration of the said status. Staff believes that the Applicants are asking for the minimum variance necessary to re-establish the use as a two-family dwelling unit, noting that not having this granted would place a significant financial hardship on the applicants.

V-19-05 Lands of Welcome Home Properties LLC at 15 South New Street Board of Adjustment Report Page 7 of 7 GUIDE TO ATTACHMENTS Exhibit Description/Author # Pages A Zoning Exhibit Map 1 (Staff) B Applicant Statement and Responses to Criteria 1 C Site Plan, 11x17 1 (Applicant) D Record of Sale of Property to Applicant 4 (Applicant) E City of Dover Customer Service Application 2 (Applicant) F Neighborhood Revitalization Fund Rent 3 Agreement (Applicant G Customer Application Form with Chesapeake 2 Utilities (Applicant) H Series of 5 Photographs Showing Condition of 3 Lower Level Dwelling Unit (Applicant) I Series of 5 Photographs Showing Condition of 3 Upper Level Dwelling Unit prior to Renovation (Applicant) J Series of 8 Photographs Showing Condition of 4 Upper Level Dwelling Unit after Renovation (Applicant)

City of Dover Exhibit A Application No.: V-19-05 Department of Planning & Inspections t ion S Divis C-1A C-1A Site New St RG-1 RG-1 Title: Lands of Welcome Home LLC Address: 15 South New Streett Parcel IDs: ED-05-077.05-03-13.00-000 Legend Zoning: RG-1 (General Residence Zone) Owner: Welcome Home Properties LLC Subject Property Date: 05/08/2019 Dover Parcels Zoning 2012 Buildings Kent County Parcels « 0 30 60 120 Feet Dover Boundary

April 10, 2019 RESPONSE TO CRITERIA Applicant: Welcome Home Properties LLC Owner/Registered Agent: Sandra E. Appling Criteria #1 • It was advertised for sale as a unique 2-unit property in downtown Dover. • Unit #1 has a kitchen, bathroom, living room, two bedrooms possibly three, electric heater, electric hot water heater, electric furnace, electric meter and separate entrance. • Unit #2 has a kitchen, bathroom, living room, two bedrooms, gas heater, gas hot water heater, electric meter and a separate entrance. Criteria #2 • Investing in this property with the initial knowledge of it being a two-unit house, renovating Unit #2 and now realizing that the property had lost its conforming status would be a financial hardship based on our business purpose and budget. • Our business goal is to provide affordable housing and with a two-unit house we would be able to accommodate two families and our budget would allow us to maintain the property in good condition and hopefully add to the revitalization of the community. Criteria #3 • There are two buildings next to ours and two across that are duplex houses. • New Hope Housing II on 30 South New Street is an apartment complex with a total of 22 Units. • House of Pride is also located on South New Street which I believe has multiple dwelling houses. • At the end of South New Street is another 2-unit house, 144A and 144B. Submitted by: Sandra E. Appling