From the Styx by Peggy Tibbetts

Let’s say you’re a property owner in Silt. How would you like it if, in less than 3 hours on a Tuesday night, the Planning & Zoning Commission changed the zoning in your neighborhood from low density residential (up to 4 dwelling units/acre) to high density (8-16 dwelling units/acre) mixed commercial to make way for the Mayor’s new development?

Well that’s exactly what happened at Tuesday (4/15) night’s P&Z Meeting when Mayor Moore’s new development, Autumn Ridge Subdivision was approved.

What is Autumn Ridge?

It’s a 34-unit residential development with a commercial building planned for a 3-acre site on Main Street (Hwy 6) between Steffie’s Place and 16th Street. The units will be housed in 6 buildings, and the 7th commercial building will be 35 feet high.

The developer is High Point Ventures LLC. The co-owners are:
Dave (Mayor) and Sherree Moore
Their children and spouses:
Joy and John Zeller
Jim and Kelly Moore
Plus:
Jim Voorheis (past Trustee)
Deric and Tracey Walter

The “affordable housing” aspect of this development amounts to 8 units out of 34. The price of these so-called affordable units is expected to be from $190,000 to $230,000. The rest of the units will be priced from $280,000 to $300,000.

Essentially Autumn Ridge is Center Townhomes Phase 2 – only higher density – like 13.7 units per acre.

So what’s wrong with this picture?

Currently that site and the surrounding neighborhood is zoned R-1 (low density). The developer is asking to change the zoning on the property from R-1 to a PUD (Planned Unit Development) with high-density residential mixed commercial.

What about the surrounding property owners? What about their rights? If this is allowed, if the town sets a precedent like this, then this can happen to any property owner in any neighborhood in Silt. It’s called spot zoning. You think you live in a low or medium density zone and all of sudden the property across from you is zoned high density mixed commercial.

But wait – there’s so much more. That’s not the only special consideration the developer is asking for.

37% of the units will not have garages
* Silt code requires all units have garages

20-foot lot widths
* Silt code requires minimum 25-foot lot widths

No open space designated
* Silt code requires 25% open space – this has NEVER been waived

No park land designated
* Silt code requires .74 acres for park land

Developer plans to make Cactus Drive (currently a cul de sac) a connecting thru street.
* But the Silt Comprehensive Plan (future plat) shows Cactus Drive as a cul de sac

Developer brings no water rights
* Silt code requires developers to provide water

Setbacks on end units are not up to code.

Turn radius on the street is not standard.

Parking will be reduced by lot landscaping.

The commercial aspect has a 4-year sunset clause, which means if the commercial units are not developed in 4 years, then the units can be sold as residential. So there’s no guarantee of commercial development. It’s not like this developer is bringing in an actual business to anchor the commercial building.

As for the affordable housing aspect, this is what the town’s own staff report said in the Autumn Ridge Subdivision PUD, Comprehensive Plan Amendment (12/9/07):

The applicant has chosen to pay an in lieu fee for parkland and water dedication and wishes to use the applicable impact fees to make improvements on trails, paths and other local parks. These types of improvements are certainly welcome as they will be a benefit to all the residents of Silt. But the question remains as to how much useable open space will the residents of this project have and what kind of livable environment this product will create? The project promises affordable housing but there is no guarantee of number of units or pricing. Affordable housing does not mean that aesthetics and amenities of a livable community need be negotiated away simply because the application is for a planned unit development.

I couldn’t agree more! Do we stuff people into units like sardines, give them no yards, no park, no open space, charge them $200,000 to $300,000 and call that a solution to affordable housing?

Not to mention the impacts on the surrounding property owners.

More than a dozen of the noticed property owners from Valley Drive and Cactus Drive came to the P&Z meeting and spoke out about their concerns about Autumn Ridge. Yet in spite of them and the plethora of special considerations, the Commissioners approved it anyway.

Usually when a development is proposed, the developer offers something to the town and  citizenry to offset the special considerations and/or waivers being requested. In the case of Autumn Ridge, there are a lot of concessions being asked of the town. And there are huge sacrifices in quality of life and property rights which wil be forced on an entire neighborhood of real people.

So what are the benefits again?

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