Paul Minze’s battle with the Historic District Commission continued in a hearing last week.
Minze bought a house at 35 Mountain St. in late 2014, and in 2015 sought permission from the HDC for some exterior repairs. He thought at the time the commission had given him approval to move one window facing Mountain Street to line up with two others on that side.
At a subsequent meeting in July, however, commissioners explicitly told Minze not to move that window. He had contractors move the window anyway, and the city responded with a stop work order.
Earlier this summer, Judge Scott Jackson ordered the city to issue permits to allow Minze to proceed with work on his roof and a porch. Eureka Springs City Attorney Tim Weaver argued against that ruling, saying that it would weaken the city’s ability to force compliance with future stop work orders. Jackson, however, said allowing Minze to continue in those two areas would protect his investment. At a hearing Sept. 5, the judge ruled that Minze would have to move the window back to its previous location.
Weaver, Jackson, and Minze’s attorney Tim Parker held a teleconference Friday morning to discuss the final orders the court will issue.
Jackson asked both parties if any contentious issues remain, other than moving the window back to its previous location. Minze has not painted the house yet, but the HDC has already approved his paint color. Weaver said the city had no other objections, except for issuing a certificate of occupancy. “We can’t issue that until he’s done,” Weaver said.
Parker argued, “They haven’t sought to keep him from living there.” Weaver conceded that the city did not intend to force Minze to move out until the window returns to its previous location. However, the city might fine him for living there without a certificate of occupancy.
Jackson said the city would have to tell Minze where to move the window, and Weaver said a representative of the HDC or Planning Commission would accompany the building inspector to the site in the coming week to decide exactly where to move the window. Jackson gave the city 10 days to make that decision, and Minze will have 10 days to respond. If Minze objects to the city’s decision, “Counsel and the court will go back to the site,” Jackson said.
“This has been much ado about not too much,” the judge said. “I’m more concerned that we go forward, and not argue about the location of the window.”
Minze might still not move the window. Parker laid the groundwork for an eventual appeal, and asked Jackson to set an appeal bond. The judge set the bond at $500. In an interview after court, Parker explained that having the appeal bond in place would protect his client from contempt of court charges if he continues to disobey the judge’s order to move the window.
Minze had previously asked for a jury trial to seek damages against the city. “The city’s position is that he did not win, and therefore he is not entitled to damages,” Weaver said. The city does not intend to pursue a claim of damages against Minze, he added. Parker said he may not require a jury trial to hear those claims.