The Willow Glen Resident

City issues live/work permit for Glen's Maynard Mansion

By John Pancharian

Under a new and relatively untried ordinance, the San Jose Planning Department has approved a live/work permit for Willow Glen's Maynard Mansion, allowing for residential and business uses in the same building. Planners decided at an Aug. 26 hearing to allow one residential unit inside the Maynard Mansion. The stately Victorian, located next door to the Willow Glen Library on Minnesota Avenue, is currently zoned for commercial use, even though it adjoins a residential neighborhood. Members of the Forrest Glen Homeowners Association, located across the street from the mansion, voiced concerns about traffic and the character of the neighborhood at a public hearing that preceded the planners' decision.

Pat Beasley and Linda Kluzek, both Forrest Glen board members, said they attended the hearing to gather information about the new permit and to put their concerns on record, should they decide later to oppose the decision.

"We are concerned that the verbiage in this amendment doesn't specifically define the type of business or use that can go on in that location," Beasley said at the hearing.

"We have input from some of our homeowners, who are very concerned," she added later, saying issues of traffic and parking came up.

"It was strange to me [the building's owner] didn't have to write down what their proposed work activity is," Beasley said.

Maia Gendreau of MBA Architects, the Lincoln Avenue firm handling the property for owner Cecilia Hopkins, said she did not know what use Hopkins may have planned for the site.

"Originally this was a residence, so to add a live/work permit to the commercial zoning returns it to its original use," Gendreau said, adding that MBA handled the rezoning of the mansion in 1993 to C-1 commercial to allow Lisa's Tea Treasures to operate in the building.

Hopkins had not returned phone calls by press time.

City planner Luke Connolly said he does not believe this live/work permit would have much impact on the surrounding community.

"Certainly, nothing we did today is an intensification of the use," Connolly said after the hearing. He added that use of the Maynard Mansion is also restricted because the building appears on the city's historical landmark roster, because it sits on only half an acre and because the building's current 24 parking spaces have not been increased.

Connolly said the current C-1, or "neighborhood commercial" zoning, is used for small retail stores, professional offices and "residential serving retail." He believes that adding one single-family unit to the building is consistent with that zoning.

According to a 1996 amendment to the zoning code that allows for live/work permits, only the owner or employees of the business at which there is a live/work unit may reside there.

Another live/work permit was issued in Willow Glen just days after the amendment passed, allowing Towne Flowers owner Phuong Malkin to live at her Willow Street business. Malkin said she is still seeking permission from the city's Public Works Department to make the needed changes to the building so she can move in.

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