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ChK-Maria Vazquez <br />From: Alec Sheehy <alec.sheehy@gmail.com> <br />Sent: Sunday, July 15, 2018 1022 PM <br />To: CD -Steven Turner <br />Cc: Katrina Sheehy <br />Subject: comments re: Mt carmel residential design <br />Hi Steve, <br />Thanks for the written notice on the residential design related to mt carnnel. Prior to the city council <br />meeting, I wanted to provide a couple of comments/questions from a resident of Mt Carmel (corner of <br />Brewster & Elwood, across from a school and a church). My wife and I have owned our home for 10 <br />years, love the neighborhood and Redwood City, and now have 3 pre-school aged kids. The only <br />thing that would cause us to leave Redwood City and specifically our house and neighborhood is the <br />local elementary school. <br />- how will the historical review and design constraints affect John Gill elementary school? In our <br />opinion, schools are intertwined into the fabric of the community. There are plenty of pre -1940s <br />houses that are likely undesirable for families of young children (size, bathrooms, lighting and <br />electrical). Anything that adds resistance to great families investing in their community and schools <br />should be strongly researched, analyzed and vetted. We would like to be assured that the city <br />council has done the homework to thoroughly understand the impact of historical designation and <br />zoning update on our elementary school and our children's future education. <br />- we appreciate the variety of homes and aesthetic charm of the neighborhood (including trees, <br />landscaping, sidewalks, etc). Our observations have been that complete teardowns of homes have <br />tended to improve the overall aesthetics, address major disrepair issues, and add to the variety of <br />homes in the neighborhood. <br />- we think about the character of our home and our neighborhood in both our maintenance and our <br />visions for alterations in the future. Design guidelines sound promising, but our home was built in the <br />30s, and we have learned that there are a number of constraints that come with that (electrical, <br />plumbing, structural and foundation). There's some basic economics that must be considered. We <br />hope that any zoning standards accelerate economically -feasible improvements to bring old homes <br />up to code to facilitate safe and young family growth (} caring for elderly parents). The neighborhood <br />should celebrate and reflect the future as well as the past. <br />-redwood city has benefited from having an clear and effective permitting process. Downtown has <br />clearly flourished because of this. We would expect the same within our neighborhood. <br />Thanks for your consideration of these comments and questions. <br />Alec Sheehy & family <br />