Reconstruction Won’t Alter Area, Residents of Normal Heights Told

Residents of Normal Heights, devastated by brush fires one week ago today, heard assurances from city officials Saturday that the neighborhood’s “character, integrity and sensitivity” will be protected during its reconstruction.

Standing on a rim of a charred canyon between the sooty ruins of two of the 64 homes destroyed by the blaze, City Councilwoman Gloria McColl and City Planner Jack Van Cleave told the press and residents of a planned emergency ordinance that would speed up the permit process for property owners planning to rebuild, while delaying new residential developments in the area.

McColl, whose district encompasses Normal Heights, expressed hope that the ordinance would allay residents’ fears that developers will try to buy the large, view lots from burned-out homeowners with the intention of building condominiums or other high-density residential projects.

“Some of the elderly people tell me they’ve been offered money by developers for their lots--and that was on Monday,” Donna Karasek, whose Cliff Place home was damaged, told McColl.

Under existing zoning laws in the area, McColl said, it would be possible for a developer to assemble adjoining lots and construct higher density projects. But under the new ordinance, the issuance of all planned residential building permits will be suspended in the area until new design standards are established and the community plan is reviewed.

“What we want to do is give the community a little breathing time,” McColl said.

One planned subdivision of 26 homes by the Sammis Co. at the tip of the 34th Street bluff would also be delayed. Lois Miller, who as president of the Normal Heights Community Assn. has fought the development, predicted that fire would force changes in the plan.

Miller said she was “laughed at” by city officials a few months ago when she complained that the Sammis development would lack adequate water pressure and that its streets would not enable fire trucks to turn around.

“Now when I say there are no fire hydrants, they’ll listen,” she said.