You are currently browsing the monthly archive for December 2009.
I’m sure a lot of you have been wondering what the plans are for the Ray Brady house, at the corner of Country Club Drive and Fairway. For a while now they have been demolishing bits and pieces of it, but leaving the bulk. On this morning’s walk, I stopped to chat with the guys who were pulling out old materials from the interior. There is a rumor that it is being demolished, but that is only partly true.
It seems that the original house had several problems that would have made it hard to bring up to date, particularly things like no insulation. The lot is a very tight corner lot, so they can’t go much bigger than the existing house, though (as previously noted) the new owners got permission to expand a bit to the north.
What I was told today is that, indeed, they will be taking down the above-ground part, stopping at the existing main subfloor. The new house will then take shape on the existing foundation and basement, with some extensions. They have been going slowly until now because there were things in the basement that they wanted to protect from the weather. Apparently they have that resolved now, and I’m told they will have the main part down by year’s end and should have the new house framed up by the end of January. It will share some characteristics with the existing house, besides the foundation, like lots of windows facing the golf course.
We’ll post more if and when we get more information.
As noted last week, there was another rezoning “information meeting” held last night at the City offices concerning the 18 acre parcel of land where the MoDOT maintenance facility used to be on Conley Road. The owners, TKG Conley Road Investments LLC, have filed for rezoning of the parcel to C – P (‘planned business’). A summation of the zoning classifications can be found on the City’s website here, and the full ordinance pertaining to C – P zoning here.
To be honest, there wasn’t much new information from what we heard at the previous meeting, though of course the dates for a hearing before the P&Z Commission, et cetera have changed. The new schedule we are currently looking at would be as follows: Staff report published on January 4th (may be available online as early as December 31); Hearing before the Planning and Zoning Commission on January 7th; First Reading at the City Council meeting on January 19th (Tuesday because of the MLK holiday on the 18th); Subsequent readings at the two City Council meetings in February.
City staff in attendance at the meeting indicated that the meeting was being held to provide information and garner feedback from concerned parties about the proposed rezoning, and that the applicant had a right to having their specific zoning request addressed in the manner established by City ordinance. Attendees at the meeting (myself included) indicated that while the specific rezoning issue was clearly defined, that it needed to be addressed in the larger context of planned development. Again, as at the previous meeting, the representative from TKG Conley Road Investments LLC said that currently they have no plans to seek having Conley Road extended further to the north, into what is property owned by the Country Club, and across Hinkson Creek in order to tie into the east end of Business Loop 70 and no power to force a sale through condemnation or other means – that would have to come from either the City or the State. City staff indicated that the current CATSO (Columbia Area Transportation Study Organization) plan indicates that this should be done at some point in the future. You can draw your own conclusions.
So, it looks like the application for rezoning the parcel to C – P will be before the Planning and Zoning Commission on January 7th, and there will be a public hearing on the matter then. (See this information if you are interested in speaking at that hearing.)
It will then go before the City Council with a recommendation from P&Z. The City Council will hear the application, and determine when there will be public discussion of the matter. If the rezoning is approved, it will then be subject to another formal review process later with the Planning & Zoning Commission, when an actual development plan is filed – the full details are in the governing ordinance.
I am waiting to see the final Staff recommendation, and what is included in the supporting documentation from the applicant, before I form my own opinion on the rezoning request. Either way, I am planning on attending the P & Z Commission meeting on January 7th. I will be *unable* to attend the City Council meeting on the 19th, as I will be out of town. I will note again that my biggest concern is in regards to the larger development issue, and that this request for rezoning should be seen in that context, as that has a much greater potential impact on our neighborhood. I would welcome feedback from the neighborhood association membership on this matter, and whether we wish to convene a meeting sometime in the next several weeks to discuss the matter.
Jim Downey
Got this nice note from Dottie Stoerker-Peters that I thought I would pass along:
I belong to a group called the Westerners. It meets here at the Country Club the second Thursday of the month. They have interesting speakers from the community and elsewhere who talk on historic subjects of one kind or another. We get together about 6 P.M., have a drink together, or just visit, then we have dinner (and they are very good dinners) and then about 7 P.M. we take a break before the speaker takes over. It’s always a pleasant evening together. The Eifferts, the Metzens and Barbara Harris have recently joined and they all say how nice it is to see neighbors and friends and have a nice dinner and speaker so close to home.
The Westerners are always looking for new members, so i thought I’d tell you about this. Perhaps you would send a message to the neighbors telling them about our group. I have been taking neighbors as my guests, but I think we could just invite them to come on their own. Dinner never costs more than $12 or $13. And the annual membership fee is $15 for an individual or $25 for a couple. Each month a letter comes to the members telling them about the speaker and inviting them to come to the meeting. If you will let me know who is interested in coming to the next meeting, I’ll pass the message on to our host and hostess, who will in turn invite them to come. If they like us, they may want to join. If not, at least they’ll have an opportunity to see whats happening in the neighborhood.
For more information, contact Dottie. If you need her contact information, drop me a note.
Jim Downey
Following up to About Last Night . . . I have received notice that TKG Conley Road Investments has once again started the process to seek rezoning of the 18 acre parcel which was the former home of the MoDOT facility just north of WalMart. This time, they are seeking C- P zoning. Again, there will be a “public information meeting”, this time to be held at 5:30 PM next Monday (December 14) at the Daniel Boone Building downtown. I will once again plan on attending, to see what they are proposing, and I would invite any other members of the neighborhood to attend as well.
Jim Downey
News item in yesterday’s Tribune may be of interest to our neighborhood:
Park founder’s widow plans tribute
Funds sought for Rock Bridge pavilion, kiosk.
Forty-four years ago, Lew Stoerker decided to create a place for children to enjoy nature’s glory.
The place would be a tribute to his daughter, Carol, who loved the outdoors and died tragically in a car accident at age 9.
In 1965, Stoerker gathered together six friends from the Optimist Club to serve as a board of directors and won a $10,000 pledge from the president of the University of Missouri to begin buying up land south of Columbia.
These days, the 2,000 acres of woodlands and pastures studded with rare geological formations that he helped preserve are known as Rock Bridge Memorial State Park. A boulder at the south entrance to the park along Highway 163 has a plaque mounted on it commemorating Carol’s life.
I think we can fairly say that Rock Bridge Memorial State Park is one of our city’s best and best-known assets. The foresight shown in preserving it from development has paid off handsomely for all who live or visit here.
And it is time that the driving force behind this treasure is recognized. That’s the intent of Dorothy Stoerker-Peters (Lew’s widow, our neighbor) and the Friends of Rock Bridge Memorial State Park. Also from the Tribune article:
From 8 to 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the Applebee’s restaurant at 2601 E. Broadway, Stoerker-Peters and other members of the Friends of Rock Bridge Memorial State Park will hold a benefit breakfast to raise money for a kiosk with panels containing information about Stoerker, the founding of the park and other notable facts.
The breakfast, including pancakes, bacon, eggs and hash browns, costs $5 for adults and is free to children younger than 8. Santa Claus is rumored to be planning a guest appearance.
Stoerker-Peters said the fund to pay for the kiosk stands at about $14,000, and she needs about $65,000 to pay for the structure. The covered kiosk/pavilion will be located in the Devil’s Icebox parking lot and hold seats for about 30 people. It will feature six informational panels with material on the park’s topography, the history of the area and the flora and fauna inside the park.
If you can, swing by Applebee’s tomorrow morning. If you can’t, and would like to make a donation to the fund, I’m sure Dorothy would be happy to accept your contribution any time.
Cheers!
Jim Downey
