Controversy is brewing in The Settlement at Willow Grove over a proposal to use the newly restored historic Kleinpeter House, located in the rear of the Planned Unit Development, as an event venue.
Though the development’s covenant, which dates back to 2005, clearly stipulates that the historic plantation is zoned for and can be used for office space, “special events and a bed and breakfast type hotel,” those potential uses were only conceptual—until 2017, when the Kleinpeter family completed a $1.2 million renovation of the 200-year-old home.
Last November, the Kleinpeters submitted a final development plan with the East Baton Rouge Planning Commission to use the 1.68-acre property as an event venue, office or B&B.
The plans were otherwise vague but stipulated that 20 parking spaces would be needed. When Planning Commission staffers reviewed the plans, they noted that 20 spaces did not meet code requirements given the size of the 4,860-square-foot home.
“We told them they needed at least twice that many parking spaces,” Planning Commission Director Frank Duke says.
The plan was deferred several times while the Kleinpeters tried to find additional parking spaces, Duke says. The plans were finally withdrawn in May but can be reintroduced at a later date.
In the meantime, a growing number of residents in the development became aware that plans to use the plantation as an event center were moving forward. Their concerns center on the size of the crowds the venue might attract, whether events would be held inside the home or on the spacious grounds under tents that could be left up for days at a time, and, above all, where guests would park.
“Parking is definitely a concern,” says attorney Brett Furr, who represents The Settlement at Willow Grove Homeowners Association. “The streets are very narrow. This was designed to be a quiet little neighborhood that doesn’t facilitate offsite parking in large numbers.”
Brett Brinson, an attorney representing the Kleinpeter family, says in a statement his clients are sensitive to residents’ concerns. Both sides have been meeting and talking in hopes of coming up with a compromise.
“The Kleinpeters are sensitive to the residents’ concerns and are diligently working with the Willow Grove Homeowners Association and other residents to ensure that the farmhouse is operated in a manner that will prevent it from being disruptive and allow it to continue to be an asset to the neighborhood and the entire community,” Brinson says. “They are confident that their policies and restrictions will more than adequately address specific concerns.”
There’s no word on how close the two sides are to reaching a compromise or what sort of arrangements for adequate parking at the facility are being made. But Duke says such land use controversies are not uncommon in multiphase, mixed-use developments.
“This is a problem we run into all the time,” he says. “A developer has something in the plans, builds the residential part first and then the people who have bought homes get all upset when he comes in to do the rest of the development and they see how it will impact their residences.”
Richard Carmouche, developer of The Settlement at Willow Grove, did not return a call seeking comment.
