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Residents, commission debate conversion of 27 South Fish Street to additional apartments
Summary
Neighbors urged the planning commission to oppose converting a former commercial/tattoo space into an additional apartment unit, citing parking loss and neighborhood change; the commission made no formal recommendation and urged neighbors to raise concerns at the zoning hearing.
Neighbors told the borough Planning Commission they oppose a plan to convert a commercial space at 27 South Fish Street into an additional apartment unit, citing parking loss and increased activity on a narrow, residential street.
The matter matters because converting commercial space to additional dwelling units can increase on-street parking demand and change neighborhood character on a block the speakers described as previously mostly single-family.
A resident who identified herself as a neighborhood occupant described a long history of the street and said, "our street began to become rental row on both sides, it has become nothing short of a nightmare for us," and asked the commission to oppose creating an additional apartment. She raised specific parking complaints: limited curbside spaces, driveways blocked by parked cars, and that on street-sweeper days residents cannot park near their homes.
Commissioners said they lacked detailed information about the applicant's proposed occupancy levels, frequency of events and exact parking arrangements, and that those matters would be determined at the zoning hearing board. A commission member told residents the commission would not make a recommendation on the application and encouraged them to appear before the zoning hearing board to present their concerns.
Commission discussion noted the application appears to seek a conversion of the building's commercial floor into a fourth residential unit. Commissioners asked whether the applicant had appealed a zoning officer determination; staff indicated the application included a special-exception request and that legal notices sometimes list both a special exception and a variance to cover uncertain application scope.
The commission's action was to take no recommendation on 27 South Fish Street. Commissioners said the zoning hearing board is the forum to evaluate parking, frequency of use and licensing questions.
The resident urged additional enforcement and repeated objections to more rental units on the block. The commission closed by asking residents to bring their specific parking and nuisance observations to the zoning hearing board so the board could consider them under the zoning process.
