New Construction in Kessler Park Sparks Debate Over Conservation District Guidelines
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Kevin Rachel and his wife moved to Kessler Park in 2020 because they liked the character of the North Oak Cliff neighborhood with its diverse historical architecture, hilly topography, and lush landscape.
About a year after the Rachels found their dream home on Canyon Creek within the Kessler Park Conservation District, construction began nearby on Nob Hill Road.
Kessler Park legend has it that decades ago previous homeowners got divorced, divided the lot, and built a guest home-style treehouse at the top of a hill at 1658 Nob HIll Road.
Today, the treehouse is a pile of rubble, and neighbors are concerned about plans submitted by the new owners that call for what appears to be a four-story home. Conservation district bylaws mandate that no structures be above two stories, Rachel said.
Amber Gracia, managing partner with architecture firm and builder RGD+B, said her team has previously completed two projects within the Kessler Park Conservation District and they’re familiar with the guidelines.
“[The home at] 1658 Nob Hill is a private residence uniquely designed for a family with connections to and deep affinity for North Oak Cliff, and on a site that was derelict and practically unbuildable,” she told CandysDirt.com. “We understand the point of view shared by a select group of neighbors and respect their right to express their opinion. The most important thing to know here is that the design adheres to Kessler Park Conservation District guidelines and is being constructed in accordance with the plans approved by the City of Dallas. Notably, the property owners and our team have received messages of support from other neighbors adjacent to the property who believe the project will positively contribute to the fabric and evolving aesthetic of Kessler Park.”
Strengthening the Kessler Park Conservation District Ordinance
The Kessler Park Conservation District is bounded by Interstate Highway 30 on the north, Stewart Street on the south, Sylvan Avenue on the east, and Plymouth Road on the west.
Here’s the deal as we see it. The 83-page Kessler Park Conservation District ordinance was adopted in 2005 and was likely modeled after another conservation district where slopes and hilly terrain aren’t major factors.
District 1 Councilman Chad West said an issue that came to light in the Kessler Park situation is how the bylaws are interpreted when a hill is in play. Neither West nor any of his appointed representatives voted to allow for the reconstruction to move forward.
“In this case, the house sits up on one of the highest hills in Kessler Park and there’s a steep drop,” he said. “I mean, this section of Kessler Park is called Kessler Canyon for a reason. The ordinance doesn’t compensate for the hills because the neighborhood it was modeled after doesn’t have these kinds of hills. There’s very few other places in the neighborhood where this could happen.”
Plans call for a basement that spans two or three levels because the home “is being carved into a giant hill,” the councilman explained.
Therefore, according to the new owners and the builder, it’s not a four-story home but a two-story home with a multi-level basement.
A consultant hired by the developer interpreted the ordinance differently than city staff and convinced city officials that the build was allowed under city code. West then requested a legal opinion from the City Attorney’s Office, which sided with the developer’s consultant.
Although it appears the construction is compliant with the conservation district, West said the bylaws need to be strengthened, a process that’s already been initiated.
“I am sympathetic to the neighbors who live near the new home in Kessler Canyon and will have a new home, however well it may be designed and envisioned, looming over them,” West said. “The conservation district bylaws, as I understand them, were drafted without contemplating how elevations like that of Nob Hill would impact building heights and basements. This grey area needs to be tightened up, a request I have made to the Kessler Neighbors United and city staff.”
‘Oak Cliff And Kessler Park Are up For Sale to The Developers’
Rachel told CandysDirt.com that the new owners found a workaround to submit plans for two basements on a two-story house rather than call it a four-story house. A petition opposed to the new construction was signed by more than 50 percent of the 600 households in the conservation district.
Rachel said neighbors were told by the development consultant that a rezoning would not be necessary, so there’s no avenue by which they can publicly fight the construction, which is well underway.
“They also said it’s not going to be a teardown,” he said. “Well, guess what happened? It’s a complete teardown. Nothing left.”
We reached out to Development Services Director Andrew Espinoza and Assistant Director Vernon Young and did not receive a response.
It appears, Rachel said, that Oak Cliff and Kessler Park are “up for sale to the developers.”
Rachel has a slew of other complaints about the project, including large trucks obstructing the roadway, construction occurring at all hours of the night, and the removal of several trees from the property.
“This lot was an urban forest,” he said. “There were owls living in the trees. They ripped out 16 trees. The things we love about Oak Cliff — hills, nature, trees — they just destroyed all of it to build this ultramodern house in an area where everything is 1950s Midcentury Modern ranch-style homes. This house would fit perfectly in East Kessler but they would have had to pay twice as much for the lot over there.”
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As a former P & Z Vice Chairman and City Councilman for District 1 of the City of Grand Prairie I have one comment to say about the Kessler Park neighborhood:
NIMBY. Not In My Back Yard.
Beautiful addition to the new City of Dallas historic neighborhood.
Not seeing the plans, my primary concern would be if at the low end of the lot, the envelope masses as four stories tall without any breaks in the facade. While in essence this could be considered a two story home carved into the hillside with a two story basement, extra care should be provided from the lowest grade to create plane breaks, projections, lower roof decks, etc to break up the mass and feel more a part of the site.
I grew up in Kessler Park, it was long ago, back when Sunset High School, was still a very safe school to go to. Almost all of my friends, lived in Kessler Park as well. Kessler has never lost its charm, so this news of a tear down, is so shocking! Developer’s have been trying their hardest, to get their hands into our cherished neighborhood. My friend’s and I have said, this will not happen, like the awful white box’s that have and are being built in Highland Park. This is wrong on so many levels. My heart is breaking to read this news.
I guess we’ll see when the home is finished!
I went through the house before it went on the market and I can say that these pictures are not how it looked. There were animals living in it, most of the trees near the house were dead and it was caving in. Rat droppings inside, I’m not sure what the options were besides what is being built. I’m glad to see that it will be beautiful in the neighborhood and work with the nature around it.
Having owning property in west kessler for almost ten years I can say most of the time I’m happy for the rules, but the article is right about the land and slope. You have to build certain ways to make it work. All I can say is when I went by “Thank god somebody is doing something with that dilapidated home that was falling down.”