Meeting in the middle

With the owner of two parcels at the corner of Russell Street and 10th Avenue requesting his property be rezoned from industrial to residential multifamily, and at least one homeowner on Russell in opposition requesting it be changed to single-family, Airway Heights’ Planning Commission is hoping their recent decision proves to be just right.

The commission voted unanimously at its Nov. 30 meeting to change the rezone request to R-2, duplexes, and send the comprehensive plan amendment back to city staff for modification. The revised request should be resubmitted to the commission at its next meeting in December.

City planning staff recommended approving the request of property owners Danny and Judi Lee to change the property from I-1 to R-3 multifamily residential, noting such a change would provide a transition zone from nearby industrial uses east and south of the property to the current residential zones to the west and north.

Development Services Director Derrick Braaten said the reality is the property is actually surrounded on three sides by residential instead of two. The parcel to the south, while zoned industrial, currently has a single-family residence on it, which Commissioner Matthew Pederson noted is currently occupied and maintained.

Opposition to the rezone was expressed in a letter from Russell Street homeowner Janet Stradling, who listed nine reasons why the property should be rezoned R-1, single family, instead. Among those reasons was an allegation the combined size of the two parcels was less than one acre, as claimed in the application, and therefore not up to city code for multifamily use.

Stradling also listed potential negative impacts to nearby property values as well as “public health, safety, welfare and protection” of nearby residents and safety concerns for children from increased traffic from an apartment complex. She also questioned whether issues about increased lighting and noise had been fully explored.

Braaten told the commission the size of the two parcels was really not conducive for a large, multifamily apartment complex, but advised them to make its decision based on what the land would be best suited for, not the use the property owner had in mind.

“That’s what you want to review against when you make your decision,” he added.

Pederson told the commission Stradling contacted him seeking guidance about writing her letter without knowing he was a commission member. After advising her of his position, Pederson said he kept the conversation away from specifics and advised her to talk to the planning staff, adding his conversation would not affect his decision.

Pederson said he felt the change to R-3 was not transitional but more of a “spot zoning” move, again pointing to the nature of the surrounding land use. He proposed making the change to R-2 as being more consistent with the neighborhood.

The planning staff had noted in its report that it didn’t consider the R-3 rezone to be spot zoning due to the surrounding properties current designation, rather than their use. The report also noted under a R-2 designation, the combined site might still be able to accommodate up to six, 6,000-square-foot parcels capable of providing space for six duplex structures for 12 total units.

“R-3 is his (Lee’s) golden standard, and R-1 is the surrounding owner’s golden standard,” Braaten said. “Maybe R-2 is the compromise.”

Pederson also expressed a belief, which he said was not backed by statistics, that the city was well stocked with multifamily housing. Commissioner Sonny Weathers added he didn’t feel the site was large enough to provide an effective multifamily building.

“If you were going to get into the apartment business in Airway Heights, wouldn’t it be better if it (parcel size) was bigger rather than on a one-acre lot?” Weathers asked.

Commission vice-chair Kal Patel also agreed with Pederson and Weathers that R-2 likely provided the best opportunity for development of the parcels while creating the least impact to the surrounding neighborhood.

John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].