New Britain herald., 1925-03-18
NUTS TO CRACK WHEN
 ZONING COMES

ZONING COMES
 Interesting details regarding building operations are expected to come up after the zoning law goes into effect. One of these, already in the limelight, will have 10 do with the character of buildings con- structed after permits are granted. It is only necessary to give few hypothetical instances to illustrate the situation that Is likely to arise
 Suppose a person gains a permit to put up two-family house in two-family zoned district, the house to have a garret - which is quite common in two-family houses. After the house is built, and every thing seems to be according to Hoyle, the owner decides to rent out the upper garret to a third family. This is frequently done, and is made the easier because many Of the so-called garrets have most Ii not all the necessary conveniences for family life. When this IS done' is the building permit violated What can the city do about it? Can the law be construed as preventing the owner from ever turning the garret of a two-family house into living quarters? Obviously there will be much scratching of heads and deep thought before such problems will be solved. The owner of such a house can rightly claim that the mere fact that he has al- lowed a, third family to live in the garret does not in the least change the annearance of the house from the outside: that everything Is the same about the premises except that three families live in the house instead of two.
 And then consider the case ot garages. Some of them arc so com- modious that it has not infrequent- lv happened that family has lived in them until other living quarters have been secured; and sometimes longer than that. Does an ostenslpIe garage become a house when some hodv lives in it? And what is gong to be done about it when this hap nens? A garage now under con- struction is said to contain a chm ney and other things commonly as sociated with houses. It may pe- oo,,o +hn fashion to construct gar 1 oros with q view to turning them into dwelling places later if desired Tn the eyes of the law, a garage is gorare when 1t houses automo- niles And it may start like a gar age and in d year or so, chameleoh- like turn into small house. What is the city going to do about 1t III sucb q case? Probably something ,ron,d have to be done, but as vel nobody has come forward with 3 ,n,e,v solution. The bridge canno' ne crossed until it is reached but there is little doubt that it will o' reached.
 lust at present the building co'''' mission is working hard to meet the demands of the building boom | h der conditions existing until recent ,v ii was no small trick for 'h' building commission to iunc''o' ,-i,bout stumbling or making man!
 .,,o,s mistakes, but just as soon al +ba building operations looN spurt there was trouble in the tune
 ,ioning of the commission and thro' =, that bodv resigned. One or th' present body said the other da' that he could not be expected It visit and keep tab on every nous and building going up in the c''' considering that the commissioner
 are not making their living 'n tn'
 manner. but are serving the city a side-,ine, the point seems "ei
 taken. When the zonirg law
 finally adopted - which will be tn case as soon as the Legislature se' around to it - the building 7'l