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    Local Entrepreneur Wants to Build An Apartment in Your Backyard

    Local entrepreneur Dave Hunegnaw has a plan to not only create more density in existing urban neighborhoods, but finally build himself a garage.

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    Hunegnaw and his wife purchased their garage-less house in Italian Village 15 years ago. The plan was always to build a garage, but when his neighbors built a garage with a carriage house for their in-laws a few years ago, a whole new plan started to emerge. What if he could build something similar and monetize it to rent out the space? As he started going through the process of designing and engineering the structure, the entrepreneurial mindset took over – if he was going to do it once, why not do it 100, 200, 300 times?

    “That’s why two years later, I still don’t have a garage in my backyard, but we actually have a business model in order to build these in a meaningful way, scalable way and affordable way,” Hunegnaw says.

    That business model is the basis for Lease the Lawn.

    Lease the Lawn will work with Columbus homeowners to build a two-car garage in their backyard with a two-bedroom apartment above it – at scale.

    From a technical standpoint, Lease the Lawn needs 50 feet of alley access and a 24-by-24 footprint to build a unit. If a space clears those two hurdles, then it’s on to city services – making sure sewer, water and electric can be run from the street to the back alley in an affordable way.

    The units will be two stories – two-car garage on the ground floor, 725 square-foot, two-bedroom, one-and-a-half bath unit on the second. Designed by Architect Jeff Glavan, who has experience building structures at scale for brands like Chipotle, the units will feature bright, open spaces. They’ll be equipped with full kitchens with finishes like granite countertops and stainless steel appliances, and have a stackable washer-dryer. In some locations, the design will also include the option for a rooftop garden/patio. One garage space will be reserved for the homeowner, the other for the unit’s renter, with the apartment accessible through an internal staircase.

    The exterior is designed with privacy in mind, with no windows facing the homeowner’s residence. What exactly that exterior will look like, though, depends on the neighborhood.

    “We are in talks with the various commissions right now in order to get those pre-approvals,” Hunegnaw says.

    The goal is to have a design to support each of the various neighborhoods where Lease the Lawn hopes to build, like Italian Village, the Near East Side, Franklinton, Merion Village and Southern Orchards. However, there will be some unifying design elements to create consistency – so someone can look at the structure and know it’s a Lease the Lawn build.

    Hunegnaw outlines four goals for Lease the Lawn: increase property values, create density, improve walkability and build safety and security.

    While it’s a long game, the model is designed to ultimately create value for homeowners.

    “Anytime we build a garage and an ADU [accessory dwelling unit], we know that we’re increasing the property value for that homeowner by at least 40%,” Hunegnaw says.

    Lease the Lawn controls the garage and apartment for the first 10 years. The company finances the design, engineering, development and construction, with the only up-front cost for the homeowner being a site survey to determine where utilities terminate – a $700 to $750 fee.

    “For us, we need 10 years of rental income in order to monetize the development and the property management and the maintenance, in order to hand the keys and the garage door opener back to the homeowner,” Hunegnaw says.

    And in that time, Lease the Lawn looks to make things as easy for the homeowner as possible. If there’s a maintenance issue, Hunegnaw says a renter wouldn’t be knocking on the homeowner’s door, but turn to Lease the Lawn as the property management company.

    Hunegnaw says homeowners can certainly be involved in the process of determining a renter, but early feedback indicates most want the process to be effortless – they want that person in their backyard, but are keen that each party maintains their privacy.

    While 10 years is the goal to hand over the keys, Lease the Lawn leaves room for life. For example, Hunegnaw says if a homeowner decided to sell and move after five years, they’d have a few options – transfer ownership of the property to the new homeowner, or amortize the future payout.

    Lease the Lawn’s remaining goals of density, walkability and safety and security go hand in hand. The ADUs create infill density in existing urban neighborhoods that typically don’t have a lot of room for additional development. They also create walkability and encourage interaction with the neighborhood in a way that a multi-story, amenity-heavy apartment complex doesn’t.

    Safety is top of mind in the design. With an internal staircase, renters can enter their garage and close the door before ascending to their unit.

    Hunegnaw aims to make Lease the Lawn units affordable for renters, and what that affordability looks like will vary by neighborhood. That could be $1,500 in Italian Village, and maybe half of that on the Near East Side, he says, adding they want to be sensitive to the dynamics of the neighborhood.

    Lease the Lawn hopes to break ground on its first units this year. Hunegnaw’s goal is to complete about 10 units in 2022 and scale to hundreds the next. With a design template, and an architect experienced in building at scale, he says build times will be quick – about 90 days. Lease the Lawn has already lined up construction partners for the first build outs as well, working with Todd Anderson and Joe McMillan.

    As Lease the Lawn scales, Hunegnaw says they’ll also explore prefabrication, which would further reduce their time on-site. 

    The concept has been garnering interest from a number of potential partners. Hunegnaw says the city has been excited about potentially bringing more ADUs to the market. 

    “Columbus is becoming very ADU friendly,” he says. 

    Nationwide Children’s hospital has also expressed interest in the project. With traveling doctors and nurses, as well as the families of children receiving care, the hospital sees a need for affordable, longer-term housing options in the area outside of hotels or Airbnbs. 

    Lease the Lawn has finalized a partnership with RiteRug. While the brand is typically associated with flooring, the relationship will highlight their many capabilities as they’ll work with Lease the Lawn on the design and build of “everything from the drywall in.”

    “We’re excited to partner with Lease The Lawn,” says RiteRug CEO Mickey Goldberg. “The team has such a tremendous passion for the product at the same time the community has such a strong need for affordable housing at scale. The timing seems perfect.”

    Coming out of COVID with lingering supply chain issues and rising inflation it might not seem like the time, and a year ago, Hunegnaw might have been worried. But with resources and partners lined up that believe in the project and the vision, he’s ready to build.

    “This isn’t just yet another stick build, it’s something meaningful and adds real value,” he says.

    For more information, visit leasethelawn.com.

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    Susan Post
    Susan Post
    Susan is the editor of The Metropreneur and associate editor of Columbus Underground, and also covers small business and entrepreneurial news and the food scene in Central Ohio.Susan holds a degree in Communication with a minor in Professional Writing from The Ohio State University. She sits on the board of the Central Ohio Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and loves coffee, whiskey, cooking and spending time with friends and family.
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