Ward 4 Under Seige by Developers
If you think the Zoning Rewrite promotes high growth downtown but protects the character, scale and intensity of growth in and around our neighborhoods, think again!
The Rewrite is a mess. The high ideals promoted on the Rewrite website, and promised by the City, have been steadily downgraded since the process began. The City website claims that the Rewrite protects existing neighborhoods and natural resources, and follows recommendations in the Open Space Protection Plan. But in Ward 4, it encourages over-development and threatens the open spaces featured in the Plan.
People worked hard on the Zoning Rewrite, and on the amendments tied to it, but the lack of a change tracking mechanism has turned it into a chaotic document that may or may not contain what people hope is there. The senior housing bonus, for example, increases density from 4.4 to 20 units per acre in residential neighborhoods. Although the website states: "the new ordinance proposes no significant changes in the City's actual land use pattern, or the currently allowed scale or intensity of new development," this is not the case because the buildable area calculation has been removed.
Remember the Frank Von Turkovich Keystone Development near Starr Farm? The Zoning Rewrite density calculation allows 20 bonus units X total land area (40 acres) -- multiplexes many stories high. The same would be true for the Infill/Murphy development at Appletree Point Farms. The timeframe for these two projects is "future, near-term" according to a March memo from Planning and Zoning to the Mayor. There could be as many as 1120 new housing units in the New North End in these two projects alone if the Zoning Rewrite passes without strong wetland protection and an amendment that restores the buildable area density calculation.
The Design Review Board (DRB) turned down the Keystone project before, but the Zoning Rewrite changes the ground rules. DRB's ability to guide development and protect existing neighborhoods is diminished in the Rewrite with weak words like encourage (instead of ensure), and should (instead of shall). Those of you who followed the Keystone hearings know how important it is to have a strong DRB, and zoning ordinances that offer specific protection to neighborhood character. Rules and enforcement need to be strengthened, not weakened. The Keystone land was clear-cut with no erosion controls. There is a clear path of mud all the way from the Keystone property to our beloved Lake Champlain. Four feet of mud and silt were released in complete violation of stormwater law. No fines were issued and no work stoppages were ordered when it was happening.
Ward 4 is under seige. If you have a homeowners' association, call for a meeting to discuss how the Rewrite affects your neighborhood. Get together with your neighbors and invite your City Councilor to join you. Attend other neighborhood meetings and/or a citywide meeting of residents to share information. Watch the Neighborhood Forums for updates and meeting postings. Sign a petition! Speak up! Let the City know you care!
