Neighbors Not Happy With Freebirds House
A while back, I reported and then unreported that the house at 5806 Watson Avenue was owned by the multi-tentacled Tavistock Group, LLC, which also happens to own burrito chain Freebirds. (I decided to dub it the ‘Freebirds House’ even though it’s not, because, hey, it’s catchier than ‘5806 Watson Ave.’)
And that was the end of things. Until, that is, last week, when I was contacted by neighbors upset a fence being built in the backyard. Said fence was being constructed without a permit, and building inspectors put a halt to the construction. When it was halted, the 51-foot long cinderblock wall stood at 13-feet-4-inches tall. Neighbors heard from contractors that the wall would be almost double that–25 feet.
That would be a violation of zoning rules if the fence were considered a fence. (I don’t have the numbers in front of me, and I have a call into someone in Building Inspection, but it’s somewhere in the ballpark of 8 feel). But, since the wall set back 10 feet from the rear property line, it will likely be considered an ‘accessory structure’, which has a much higher allowed height.
I called Michael Ruff, who owns the Tavistock Group that owns the house. He declined to comment. I asked if, as he had originally told me, this was to be an investment home, since the large children’s play structure and humongous wall seemed to indicate otherwise, to which he also declined to comment.
I’ll speak with building inspectors and maybe swing by the Oak Cliff Municipal Center to check out building plans. Updates as they come.
