Novak Manor, a popular West Allis haunted house, gets city approval to operate in 2024

After being told last October that their popular haunted house attraction couldn't move forward in 2024, the Novak Manor was granted a special event permit from the City of West Allis at the May 7 Common Council meeting.

Adam Novak, who runs the haunted house with his wife Patty Novak, shared the news on Facebook May 8.

"We are thrilled to announce that the West Allis City Council has officially granted us our special event permit for this year's event!" he wrote.

The news also met with the approval of the city's mayor.

“I am glad the council passed this unanimously," West Allis Mayor Dan Devine said. "The Novaks did a commendable job putting together a plan that should work for just about everyone involved, both directly and indirectly.”

The permit pertains to only the approved dates in 2024, West Allis City Attorney Kail Decker said.He said the reason the matter came before the Common Council was because the special event permit premises extended into public land and there was a request for a special zoning exception.

The special event permit and zoning exception were approved by the council by a 9-0 vote, with Patty Novak, now a West Allis Common Council member, abstaining.

Novak, one of the two alderpersons in District 4, has abstained from all votes related to the topic, Decker confirmed.

Why the Novak Manor's permit was originally denied

The Novak Manor, 9730 W. Montana Ave., is located in an RA-2 zone, which is intended for neighborhoods with primarily detached dwellings on moderate-sized lots. The use of the property in this area constitutes an event space or theater, according to the city's municipal code. Under WAMC 19.32, this type of use is not typically allowed in an RA-2 district.

Decker previously told the Journal Sentinel that the Novaks had obtained permits for the attraction, but said the documents didn't authorize them to run a haunted house. "That permit authorized them to obstruct the right-of-way for a display," he said.

In October, the city council passed an ordinance which allowed for a special zoning exception. These typically operate on a temporary basis, according to Steve Schaer, the manager of planning and zoning for the City of West Allis.

Under the special event permit conditions, the Novak Manor may not serve food or alcohol, no transient merchants are allowed on site or within the special event premises, and any revenues collected must be donated to a 501(c)(3) organization.

What will be the Novak Manor's hours of operations be for Halloweengoers in 2024?

The Novak Manor will open for operation on Sept. 27 and will run until Oct. 26 for the 2024 season. The attraction will only be open on Fridays and Saturdays from 6 to 10 p.m. There will be no make-up dates in the event of bad weather.

Approximately one-third of the haunted will be available for the community to view 24 hours a day, according to city planning documents. Visitors will be to take a quick look at the display or can park to take a walk through. This portion of the attraction will be available from the end of September to the beginning of November.

Some neighbors expressed concerns

Although the council passed the measure unanimously, some neighbors have expressed concerns about parking and eventgoers trespassing on nearby private property.

At the meeting, Adam Novak said he's talked with neighbors about their objections and tried to address them.

"We have spoke to some of the neighbors and over the past few years, we've tried to make as many concessions as we see possible," Novak said.

One neighbor complimented the Novaks for the countless hours they put into the attraction and addressing neighbors' concerns.

Contact Adrienne Davis at amdavis@gannett.com. Follow her on X at@AdriReportss.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Novak Manor haunted house gets green light from West Allis for 2024