From: Belmont Addition <belmontaddition@yahoo.com> To: Brittany Bailey <bbailey@hrhoustongroup.com>; Dusty Cooper <jamescooper00@yahoo.com> Cc: Belmont Addition <belmontaddition@yahoo.

com>; "sbranan@greenbrookhomesdfw.com" <sbranan@greenbrookhomesdfw.com> Sent: Saturday, December 15, 2012 1:24 PM Subject: Re: Resolutions Dear Brittany and Dusty: Thank you for reaching out to us in an attempt to find a mutually satisfactory resolution of our dispute. We would very much like to reach a resolution with you and put an end to this dispute and avoid future litigation over this matter. I am sure you feel the same way. Toward that end, some of our neighbors met this week, and we have come up with three possible resolutions that we hope represent a compromise acceptable to both you and the neighborhood. In coming up with these resolutions, we tried to consider the things that you said are important to you (i.e., preservation of green space, having an attached garage, the view into your back yard and an open floor plan) and the things that are important to us (preserving the lot grade, maintaining the maximum number of stories at 2, garage placement and setbacks). It is not our desire to dictate the design of your home; we simply wish to preserve the standards the neighborhood deems critical to the ongoing success of our ordinance. We feel that each of these proposals represent a sort of splitting of the baby in that they attempt to preserve the things most important to both of us but require each side to give up something substantive and important to them in order to reach a compromise. While these options are the ideas we had, we are

certainly open to other ideas that offer a true compromise and allow each side to preserve some of what is important to them. Proposal No. 1: Build the entire structure at the original grade level (with no subterranean portions) with no more than 2' of raised foundation or crawl space. With this option, we would be willing to allow (a) the attached garage (at original grade, not below the grade) in its present location under the second story and not behind it, (b) the floor of the garage to be at grade so long as the rest of the house is no more than 2' above grade, and (c) a full 24' driveway from the street to the garage. By raising the garage to the grade level, this allows you to maintain the maximum amount of green space, maintain your open floor plan and keep the garage attached to the house. For us, this proposal eliminates the need for the partially exposed subterranean level under the front part of the house and restores the lot to its original grade, thus addressing our lot grading and maximum of 2 stories concerns. What you would be giving up is the view to the back yard, and we would be giving up on the setback, driveway width limitation and garage location issues. Proposal No. 2: Redesign the house such that the maximum distance from the floor of the garage to the peak of the roof on the front section of the house is 30 feet or less. This approach allows you to maintain all of your objectives in some manner. Working with your architect, we believe that it may be possible to achieve this by lowering the foundation of the front and raising the garage a bit in such a way to reduce the impact of a 3-story home from the street and preserving some view and access to the backyard. In this scenario, we are giving up at least something on everything that is important to us. Proposal No. 3: Move the garage to the rear of the lot and build the remainder of the house at original grade level with a maximum height of 30 feet. With this option, we would agree with a subterranean

garage with up to one story above it. In this scenario, we would also agree to allow a covered walkway between the garage and the house if you like. (This is generally not allowed in our ordinance, but we will not oppose it in this case.) This option allows you to maintain your view and open floor plan and add another story over the rear portion of the house to add additional square footage if you like. You would be giving up having an attached garage, though we are ok with a covered access. For us, we are giving on the lot grading issue in order to preserve the look of a two story home by separating the garage from the house. Most builders in the past have found a detached garage at the back of the lot to be the most desirable way to achieve the best use of the yard space on our narrow lots. If you are interested in meeting to discuss proposals, we are certainly willing to do that. And as I told Dusty when we last spoke, if we can come to a resolution, we are committed to working with you as quickly as possible to get city staff's approval and have a new permit issued so that you can proceed with your project. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. We look forward to hearing from you. Sincerely, Melissa Kingston BACD Ordinance Review Committee