NPU-B board hears of variance applicant who defies city, builds illegal structure and hides behind gates

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The most stimulating item during the rather mundane NeighborhoodPlanning Unit-B board meeting Tuesday night Involved the case of a Buckheadresident who has twice been refused a zoning variance, built the structurewithout a permit and hides behind the gates to the property from city officialstrying to serve papers to force the removal of the illegal structure.

It is the classic case of persons of means, who live at 2883 AndrewsDrive in Buckhead, believing they are above the law and snubbing their noses atcity authority.

NPU-B Zoning chair
Bill Murray

Bill Murray, chair of the NPU-B Zoning Committee, told board membersthat the resident, who he did not identify, has been turned down twice for therequested variance and has been ordered by the city to remove the structure.
He said Buff Quillian and John Foley of the Peachtree Heights Westneighborhood have been very diligent on this issue. But the city has beenunable to serve papers on the resident because the property is gated.
Murray said that when the city officials arrive at the property, thehired help tell them that the resident is not there. When they go to thebusiness office of the resident, they also are told the person is not there.Therefore, they have not been able to serve the necessary papers on theresident.
Foley told the NPU-B board that the situation is now moving on to thecourts,,,.that the city is prepared to take the necessary legal action to seethat this situation is rectified.
One NPU-B board member suggested the organization should send a letterto the city praising them for taking action against those people who eitherignore refusals for variances and build what they want or who build what theywant and then come before the NPU and ask for forgiveness.
It has been a problem that the NPUs and the city have had to deal withon a regular basis.

APD Zone 2 Commander
Maj. Van Hobbs

In other action during the NPU-B board meeting, Maj. Van Hobbs,commander of the Atlanta Police Department’s Zone 2, said a commercial robberhas been a major factor in increased crimes during the first month of the year.He said APD knows who they are looking for, but that is all he can say at thistime.  
Hobbs said trending up this year is burglary,which is common for the first few months of the year because the thieves “dotheir Christmas shopping in January,” after the holiday season. In response to a question, Hobbs said theincrease in reports of suspicious persons in residential neighborhoods, hebelieves, is due to the APD’s program asking people to report anythingsuspicious.
“Weencourage people to call when they see something suspicious” so the APD officercan respond and check on the people and file a field investigation report. Thatgives the police the information they need to know who is in the variousneighborhoods and when they are there.
However, Zone 2 is down 14 percent in auto larcenies, compared to lastyear, and Hobbs attributes it to increased patrols and more blue lights onPiedmont and Peachtree Streets. He saidthe department is now tracking who the victims are and they know 33 percentlive in Zone 2 and 67 percent do not and have not heard about the problem inZone 2.

NPU-B Chair person
Andrea Bennett

It was alsoannounced that NPU-B board member Brian Arnoldcame in second in the vote for the Atlanta Planning Advisory Board’s citizenmember on the board of Invest Atlanta, the city’s development authority.  Former member of Atlanta City Council and pastGeorgia House representative for District 55 "Able" Mable Thomasknocked him out of first place.

“We’d really like to see someone from this sideof town involved. It’s an important position,” said NPU-B chair Andrea Bennett 

But Richard Rauh, NPU-B’s APAB representative,  Atlanta Planning Advisory Board, said there isstill a chance for Arnold to get elected to the board if the mayor decides inhis favor. “The mayor hasultimate discretion whether he accepts the nominee or not,” he said. “The mayorcan veto it.” 
One reason the meeting was both short and rathermundane, was that almost all of the zoning cases on the agenda ended up beingdeferred, a situation that seems to be more prevalent recently.
However, NPU-B chair Bennett said she wouldrather see the cases deferred and the parties come to an amicable negotiatedsettlement on their own than have a contentious discussion before the NPUZoning Committee and board.