Apartment building gets height exception

The Port Washington Common Council on Tuesday approved a special exception that will allow a four-story apartment building that is an average of 55 feet tall to be constructed on a private parking lot off Pier Street in downtown Port.

The exception is needed because the building will be taller than the 35 feet allowed by right, Bob Harris, the city’s director of planning and development, said.

While several downtown business owners wrote to the city in support of the taller building, saying the residents who live there will add to the vibrancy of downtown and support local shops and restaurants, four people who spoke during a public hearing Tuesday said it will take away from the city’s charm and overshadow other structures.

“It has to be something super, super special if we’re going to exceed 35 feet,” Lynn Cosentine, 217 W. Jackson St., told aldermen. She said she looked at the proposed building and downtown and asked herself, “What advantage is it to the people of Port Washington. I couldn’t think of a single thing that would make Port better.”

Kathleen McCormick, 208 Antoine Dr., said she believes the building, called Pier Street Landing, “towers over the existing structures in an almost comical manner.”

The building will “drastically alter the feeling” of Franklin Street and downtown, she said, and set a precedent for other buildings. The only benefit is to the developer, who can squeeze in more units and realize more money from a taller building that won’t benefit residents.

Tim Shininger, a Fredonia resident who said he owns a nearby parcel, asked aldermen to consider the precedent they were setting.

“In the future if I want to build a five-story building, will you allow it?” he asked, adding he is also concerned about the impact of the building on downtown parking.

The 51-unit apartment building proposed by Haley Dobre, which will also have two commercial spaces, would be built on what is today a private parking lot that is seldom used, Harris said.

“There will be a zero loss of public parking spaces,” he said. 

Harris told aldermen that most buildings on Franklin Street are taller than 35 feet, adding the average is between 45 and 46 feet tall.  

He noted that the city is developing a new zoning code with stricter limits and Dobre’s building would fall within the new guidelines.

Harris also said that a decorative parapet that will hide mechanicals on the roof add to the height, with Ald. Paul Neumyer noting it is important to the city that the mechanicals be hidden from view.

Dobre, who said that one reason for the height is the change in elevation on the site, said her request is not unprecedented. Other recently built downtown structures that are taller than 35 feet include the Harbour Lights and Newport Shores buildings, she said, adding the Boerner Mercantile Building, which she owns, was built in 1910 and is taller.

“I imagine at that time it seemed bold to build a building that tall,” she said.

Dobre noted the apartments will fill a need in the downtown and complies with the city’s master plan.

The height exception, she said, is key to her building.

“The height approval means we either get to proceed with Pier Street Landing or it remains a private parking lot,” she said. “Pier Street Landing is the type of project Port needs.”

Ald. Deb Postl stressed that the city’s zoning code only triggers additional review of tall buildings.

“Nothing on the books says you can’t have a development this tall,” she said.

“Most people would agree we love Franklin Street and we want more things like Franklin Street,” Ald. Mike Gasper said. But those buildings are tall and narrow, built on 20-foot-wide lots, he said, adding the economics of the time won’t allow similar structures to be constructed.

“When I look at downtown, I see those buildings as the form we want to follow,” he said. “It is tall. If we want to see infill development, this is the type of building that will happen. I am good with the height of this building.”