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Tuesday, 05 December 2006 17:35 |
By DAVID FORBES
Despite opposition from some area residents, Asheville City Council voted 6-1 to approve rezoning for a large condominium development on Hendersonville Road on Nov. 27, convinced by energy-efficient design, better stormwater retention features, road improvements and denser housing close to downtown.
"In my entire year on council, this is probably the best project Iëve ever seen," Councilman Bryan Freeborn said. "It has practically all of councilës wish list on it. As development has got to come, I think weëll lose a lot of credibility if we donët accept a project thatës this good."
The
336-unit Weirbridge Commons project, located at 1740 Hendersonville
Rd., will replace one of the last areas of pastureland, currently a
working farm, in that area. The project will also include several
commercial lots at the front and will bring approximately $607,000 in
tax revenues into the cityës coffers.
The dissenting
vote came from Councilman Carl Mumpower, who praised the project, but
said that the drastic change in zoning ÇƒÓ from pasture land to dense
condo project ÇƒÓ is too much.
"I have a little
trouble with taking property thatës at a low density level and just
popping it up with such a dramatic alteration and impact," Mumpower
said. "The real question here is ÇƒÓ does our zoning mean anything?"
But Councilwoman Robin Cape said that more dense development like this is exactly what Asheville needs.
"The common definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result," Cape said.
"I think we
could apply that to Hendersonville Road, when we just keep building
further and further out. We have to look at the possibility of
increasing our density, increasing the ability to access mass transit.
I would say that this is calling for us to intensify density if we want
to reduce traffic on it. Weëve inherited a world that is stressed by
many things. Air pollution has to be dealt with. We cannot keep pushing
more and more traffic farther and farther out. We need to get used to
living closer together."
Residents of the
area filled the council chambers. Much of the opposition to the project
came from residents of the Crowfields condominiums, whose association
organized efforts against it.
"Crowfields is
an oasis within a city and we have an environment second to none in
Asheville," Mack Cox, president of the association, said. "We realize
time changes things and that the city is going to grow ÇƒÓ but in our
opinion zoning should not exceed whatës in the surrounding
neighborhood. The leap here is not compatible with the surrounding
area. This much density seven miles from downtown is just not
acceptable. There are just too many conditions not yet resolved by this
developer."
A round of applause from opponents of the project followed Coxës remarks.
However,
representatives of the developer, Rusty Pulliam, asserted that with the
traffic improvements, including parking located under the buildings and
environmental features, the project can be an example for Asheville.
"I hope youëll
see that this is a wonderful project that can really be a poster child
for smart growth in the area," Lew Bissette, an attorney representing
the developer, said in remarks to council. "The developer is going to
spend about $5 million on improvements: to Racquet Club Road, for a
stormwater system that can handle a 25-year storm including rain
gardens, on certified environmentally friendly design and on affordable
and workforce housing."
Some of those
improvements were offered by the developer, but others were planned at
the request of city staff, who set a multitude of conditions for the
project. In addition to the environmental features, 10 percent of the
condos will be earmarked for affordable and workforce housing.
But Crowfields
resident Bob Malkin said that the Weirbridge project would do more harm
than good to the area ÇƒÓ including environmentally.
"Weëve heard a
lot of spin ÇƒÓ I used to be a planner and this is what is called the
zoning game," Malkin said. "There are mature trees on the site, 50, 60
years old. Based on the developerës plan, 161 old, beautiful trees will
be bulldozed and chainsawed down. This council stands for
sustainability, but there will be maybe 10 trees left on this site. If
you look at what he has done on other sites, this developer has no real
environmental consciousness."
But not all
residents of the area opposed the project, some supported it on the
grounds that it will help property values and that the neighborhood
needs the traffic improvements.
"Iëm willing to
have some development in exchange for turn lanes and traffic lights,"
John Crook said. "It will increase the value of my property and I
expect it will increase the value of Crowfields as well."
Former Crowfields resident Miller Williams sounded a similar note.
"I would much
rather see the growth of Asheville occur in this type of project, where
itës carefully managed instead of taking up 60 to 70 acres of land for
the same amount of people," Williams said. "This looks like a good
project and itës a much betters use of land than putting a Wal-Mart
there."
But Crowfields resident Tony Pirazzo said that he moved from Miami to Asheville to avoid exactly this sort of development.
"I moved here
because I wanted quality of life," Pirazzo said. "Please donët let
whatës happened to Miami happen to a beautiful place like Asheville. We
just want density thatës a lot smaller than this proposal. Thatës all
weëre asking."
In the end,
however, council sided with the developer. But Cape and Councilman
Brownie Newman added on more conditions to the original motion,
requiring that the developer meet some of the environmental standards
they are already pursuing before the city allows the buildings to be
occupied ÇƒÓ and that no grading or removal of trees begin until funding
for the project is secured.
"Weëve been burned on some projects before," Newman said. "This time, we just want to make sure."
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