The same company is planning a similar devleopment in West Chester Twp. at 4940 Mulhauser Road. The cost for the Fairfield development would be just under $200,000 per unit, said Patrick Merten, a representative of Hearthstone Holdings.
Landominiums are properties where the owner owns both the home and the land, while a condominium involves a homeowner association that takes care of maintenance for the building, according to Greater Cincinnati Real Estate.
The buildings would begin construction this year, pending final approval by City Council. The only major sticking point with planning commissioners was the configuration of the driveways to the properties.
The original site plan called for individual driveways for each unit, Donovan said. However, a second site plan, revised by the city’s engineers, called for shared driveways between two units. Donovan said the city had been concerned about there being too many curb cuts, creating a potential traffic hazard.
However, commissioners pointed out these shared driveways could lead to other problems, such as the stacking of vehicles in driveways, preventing residents from getting out of their own property.
“I would go back to the city engineer and say that one of the concerns we heard at City Council was about parking,” said Commissioner Tom Hasselbeck. “The applicant says there’s a two-car garage and two more spaces in the driveway … if we’re going to make them share a driveway, you’re not going to be able to park in the driveway and have the other guy get out.”
Merten said, “Is this our preference? No. But we’ll roll with this and make it saleable, but there are some issues to be worked out. As the plans come in, these shared driveways may look a little different — for the better.”
Council will hold a second reading of the matter at Monday’s regular meeting, with a vote expected in May.
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