June 11, 2005
Postmortom
Don Bemis writes to City Council and Planning Commission. Check out Larry King's testy, dismissive retort.
From Don:
During the discussion of a City Council motion to send the Wells Street project back to Planning Commission for a definite recommendation on allowable height, Janet Fahs said the Planning Commission had wanted to send the Wells Street proposal to City Council without a recommendation.
That is not correct. A motion to that effect was made, seconded, and voted upon, but it failed. The Planning Commission voted 4-2 to send the project to City Council with a negative recommendation.
There was much discussion during the City Council meeting about whether approval of the Wells Street project would set a precedent. Several people said no. The City Manager said in his report to Council, "PUD's are intended to be non-precedent setting." Then the City Council granted a waiver on height, based on the rationale that higher buildings had been approved for the area in 1983. In other words, City Council relied upon the precedent of a PUD that was never built! If this doesn't prove that a PUD will set a precedent, nothing does.
Speaking of the 1983 precedent, I did not hear City Council discuss that the area was zoned differently in 1983. I also seem to recall that the 3-1/2 story height restriction was added to the Zoning Ordinance in reaction to high rises that could not be denied but were never built, in order to prevent similar future efforts. If I am correct, high rise project approval is not a valid precedent for ignoring ordinance height limits.
The developer's spokesman said that other buildings in South Haven are five stories high. Nobody challenged his statement. No building in South Haven is taller than four stories as defined by the Zoning Ordinance.
City staff has submitted a proposed rewrite of the Zoning Ordinance PUD section. Among other changes, revisions would eliminate height as a basis for project disapproval, reduce open space requirements, allow more commercial uses in PUDs in residential zones, increase dwelling density, and take certain decisions out of Planning Commission hands. The Planning Commission will discuss the proposal in a workshop later this month, and there will be a public hearing at the July 7 meeting. Before the public has had an opportunity to comment on proposed changes, and before the Planning Commission has begun to discuss them, the City Council granted waivers that essentially told the Planning Commission that PUD ordinance revisions had better allow the scope of project approved Monday night. Consider, for example, if the Planning Commission recommended a maximum height of five stories for the Celery Pond area. Imagine City Council approving it.
Then suppose a developer brings in a plan with the world's ugliest six-story motel, to go next door to 815 Wells Street. Picture the happy lawyers if the City denies the application because it exceeds ordinance height limits.
From Larry:
Don,
Thank you for the comments. The decision on 815 Wells Street has been made. Let's move on.
You've got some proposed changes coming before planning commission.
Discuss and debate them there, and then let me know your decisions and
rational. I need that type of feedback and direction.
It appears city council has the intention of allowing height and density increases suggested by the Master Plan. If planning commission needs more resources to work through those changes and strengthen the non-precedent portion of our puds, then let me know.
Larry King
Posted by Elaine at June 11, 2005 06:51 AM