Your City Observer on Aug 31 belittled neighbor’s concerns about 410 Lafayette Way. The City Code includes a clear, non-discriminatory prohibition of boarding houses in R1 neighborhoods which should protect homeowners from encroachment by developments that would reduce house values and quality of life. There is no mention of students in the ordinance. The city staff chooses not to enforce this ordinance and neither they nor any city council in the last 60 years has acted on any alternative that they would be willing to enforce. Once established the city does nothing about boarding houses. Thus, the only non-litigious recourse for homeowners to protect their property is to bring such anticipated cases before the city council. Once again, Councilmember O’Neill and others have voted to protect the rights of non-resident developers to violate our city ordinance at the expense of resident’s rights to protection under the ordinance.
