The company that owns a block of unique apartments in the Bishop Arts District moved to combine them into one huge property that could be redeveloped into a four-story apartment block.
Minnesota-based Oaks Properties LLC last year purchased 10 small apartment buildings and a single-family home on Eighth Street between Llewellyn and Adams.
Oaks has applied for a “replat” that would combine all of the lots on the block into one property. Zoning in the Bishop Arts area puts no limit on lot sizes, it doesn’t require setbacks or any yard, and up to four stories are allowed.
With this replat, which comprises about 2.7 acres, the block could be redeveloped into two solid apartment buildings taking up the entire block from sidewalk to alley.
The request is unlikely to be denied because replats are considered only by the City Plan Commission, not City Council, and they’re approved as long as they’re in compliance with city ordinances. Replats are a quasi-judicial matter, and City Councilman Scott Griggs has said that is something he’d like to consider changing.
The properties also fall just outside the city’s demolition delay overlay, which means that if the owner applies for demolition permits, they could be torn down right away. While Heritage Oak Cliff is working to soften some of the extreme Bishop/Davis zoning rules along the West Davis corridor, these properties are not included in that.
