By GARRET JAROS / Lincoln Chronicle
WALDPORT – Construction of an auto repair shop topped by apartments in the heart of downtown is expected to get underway in a couple of months thanks to one man’s effort to help his family find stability.
Gary Church of Yachats, who owns Topper’s Ice Cream in Yachats along with the building that houses it and two other businesses, purchased the empty parking lot directly north of Hi-School Pharmacy in September.
“We’re trying to help two situations at the same time,” Church told the Waldport planning commission prior to its approval for a conditional use permit Monday.
The two-bay garage will have only one mechanic – Church’s son Gary Jr. — who told the Lincoln Chronicle he as a passion for working on cars and believes he can make a living at it. One of the two apartments above will go to Church’s father-in-law who has been on a waiting list find low-income housing for more than a year.
“It really goes back to helping family members get their thing going at the same time,” Church said of the decision to build in Waldport. “We were looking for wherever we could do something that fit the mold of what we wanted to do.”
The 27-foot-high building will have a footprint of 32-by-38 feet and be situated in the southwest corner of the 50-by-100 foot lot at the corner of West Willow and Northwest Maple streets. The ground floor will consist of a 948-square-foot garage and 192-square-foot office. Upstairs will be divided into two 460-square-foot one-bedroom apartments with living room windows facing Alsea Bay.
The extra apartment will be available for long-term rental at market rates.
The office will run the length of the building’s south side and be fronted by a new sidewalk that the building’s roof – with lighting pointing down – will overhang. The bay doors will face east where there will be a parking lot with five spaces. Two more parking spaces will be located on the north side of the building. The west side will have a more residential look with stairs going up between the apartments.
Decorative moldings and trims will be applied to windows and door openings, including the roll-up garage doors “to add to the old-town atmosphere,” Church wrote in his application to the city.
The planning commission did receive two objections to the proposed building from neighbors with bay front property across from the site on Maple Street.
“An auto repair shop, with its noise and traffic congestion, is antithetical to the bay views, trees and serene strolls of Maple Street,” Greg and Scottie Jones wrote in an email. The Jones own Maple Street Beach House, a vacation rental.
They said the street is a tourist draw and questioned the availability of parking for apartment residents, auto shop employees and its customers.
The Jones added that “the very character of an auto repair shop would do irreparable harm to the integrity of Maple Street,” and is “bound to lead to tensions with neighbors.” And that the noise will be an irritant that will drive away tourists, lower home prices and do “considerably more harm than good,” they wrote.
Church said he was sympathetic to concerns, but emphasized it will be a low-volume shop with only one mechanic and enough parking either inside the garage or with the onsite parking to accommodate residents and customers alike.
Church purchased the lot from Jeff Berg, owner of Waldport Family Cuts.
A residential structure had sat on the site until it was removed in the 1980s and replaced with the parking lot, according to city planner Jaime White, who recommended the commission approve the build.
“It is staff’s opinion the standards for the downtown district have been met,” White said. “And staff finds the proposed development is an appropriate use for the site.”
- Garret Jaros covers the communities of Yachats, Waldport, south Lincoln County and natural resources issues and can be reached at GJaros@YachatsNews.com
