From the street, the house at 1222 Chalcedony St. appears to be undergoing a typical remodel. But what neighbors recently discovered was over the past three weeks builders have added six additional bedrooms to house a maximum of 18 renters, creating what both Councilman Kevin Faulconer and City Attorney Mike Aguirre refer to as a mini-dorm.
The construction came to the public’s attention at the most recent meeting of the Pacific Beach Community Planning Committee, and residents quickly mobilized Tuesday, April 3, to bring attention to the property and the impact it will have on an area of mostly single-family residences.
Faulconer and Aguirre were on hand to assure neighbors that the city is now aware of the problem and would begin investigating how the property owner could legally modify the house.
Speaking in front of the house while construction workers continued to hammer away, Faulconer said city officials were looking at what the city does and doesn’t allow and was concerned about the precedent it could set in the community.
“If this kind of development can take place, no one is safe,” Faulconer said.
“What I worry about is not just the neighborhood but the domino effect it could have on the city,” he said.
The city attorney said he was informed about the expansion and has already begun to investigate.
“The criminal unit has advised that they will look to see if anything illegal is going on,” Aguirre said. “We’re not singling out students but the individuals who are trying to destroy a community.”
Approximately 60 residents gathered in front of the home to ask the councilman and city attorney how the construction could have been approved in the first place and now that it’s begun, what they could do to stop it.
As the crowd gathered and television news crews began to arrive, construction workers hung sheets of plywood over the window frames to block views of them working inside the house.
With the nine rooms reportedly being rented for $700 a month each for a total of $6,300 a month, Aguirre said the amount of rent coming in could technically make the home a business. If the home was classified as a business, the city could regulate under different laws and zoning rules.
“We may not have the answer today, but this is not an apartment neighborhood,” Aguirre said.
Both Faulconer and Aguirre were up front that the project might meet the necessary zoning rules, and if that’s the case, Faulconer said they city needs to look into laws to stop the expansion of mini-dorms.
Next-door neighbor Darren Lee bought his home approximately one year ago. He said everything seemed fine with the house he shares a fence with until last month.
“My mother was over, and she looked over the fence and said, ‘My God, it looks they’re building a frat house!'” he said.
Lee also pointed out that the work was being done as inconspicuously at possible.
“Notice how they don’t have any work trucks out front,” Lee said. “Everything is being done from the back where it’s hidden from the neighbors.”
Lee and his neighbors said they were worried about the loss of parking along with the noise and trash that would be associated with a house filled with 18 college students.
“If it was a condo, they would have to make sure there was enough parking,” said Jim Vollmer, who lives a few doors down from the mini-dorm. “They ram it through quick, then once it’s built, it’s too late to tear it down.”
The new owner of the home is listed as Renee Earhart, who reportedly owns at least one other home in the College Area that is also being converted from a three-bedroom home into a nine-bedroom home.
In the meantime, the construction continues to the neighbors’ chagrin.
“We’re all working people trying to protect our quality of life,” Lee said.