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Next Monday there will be a rezoning meeting which may be of interest:
You are invited to a public information meeting on the following
proposal:A request by TKG Conley Road Investments (owner) to rezone 18.31 acres of land from R-1 (One-Family Dwelling) to C-3 (General Business), located on Conley Road, north of Walmart at the former MoDOT facility site.
(Case 09-124)When: 5:30 p.m.Monday, Nov. 16, 2009
Where: Mezzanine Conference Room,
Daniel Boone Bldg. (701 E. Broadway)
This is a parcel adjacent to the Country Club, and could be a factor in changes to the golf course. I plan on attending, and invite any other concerned members of the neighborhood association to join me and hear what is proposed.
Jim Downey
Following up to this post, this evening we had a meeting with Tim Crockett of Crockett Engineering Consultants and Dave Fenton, new owner of the land where Total Environments Landscaping was on Old Highway 63.
Mr. Crockett outlined what the plans are for the site, and where they are at with the process to seek rezoning and development. Mr. Fenton, owner of Columbia Car Care (currently located at the corner of Providence and Business Loop 70), would like to build a new car care facility (to replace his current one) on the northern section of the property, where the old brick maintenance/storage building currently sits. The current structure where Total Environments had their retail space would be renovated and leased for professional use (a physical rehabilitation/therapy service was discussed). The rest of the lot (about 1/3) on the south/east portion of the property would be left as green space, with the intent to not develop it. Overall, 60% or more of the site would qualify as “green space”.
The new car care facility would be about 10,000 square foot in size, with brick/dryvit construction on the front and east, commercial metal lap siding on the rest. There would be no external storage of vehicles or parts/equipment. The facility would meet or exceed all city standards for landscaping and storm water retention, as well as the relevant OSHA/EPA requirements. There would be no body or painting work done on the site, and any noisy equipment (mostly compressors) would be confined to one area of the building with appropriate sound abatement. Entrance on/off Old Highway 63 would use extant driveways, and the traffic impact would be minimal. Likewise, signage would be minimal. Hours of operation would typically be Monday through Friday 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM, with possibly some Saturday morning hours. In order to reduce light pollution, the builder will seek city permission to eliminate the parking-area lighting, and only have security-type lighting around the facility. There would be vegetation screens (large white pine trees or similar) on the east and south, to minimize impact on the surrounding houses.
Mr. Crockett and Mr. Fenton both seemed eager to work with the neighborhoods adjacent to the property, and said that they wanted to meet with us to hear our thoughts *before* even starting the formal paperwork with the city to seek rezoning of the relevant parcels to C-P, with the C-3 allowance of having a car care facility only. They were willing to completely and forthrightly answer all questions, and welcomed feedback.
Overall, I was pleased with the meeting and the presentation. My personal opinion is that they would be good neighbors, and a good addition to the area, and so long as their formal application does not significantly deviate from what was presented tonight, it would be a good thing for our Neighborhood Association to support. The members of our neighborhood association (and we had about 2/3 of the attendees) agreed that it was not necessary to have a formal meeting to discuss the proposed development, since everyone was satisfied with what was presented to us.
One item which was raised with me at the end of the meeting was a request to have the north side of the facility, which would be partially exposed to Old Highway 63, to have the same sort of brick/dryvit construction as the west and south sides. If you have any additional questions, or would like to offer your opinions in the matter. do please feel free to send me an email ( jim@afineline.org ) or post a comment here.
Jim Downey
I will be sending out an email and walking around an announcement to everyone in the neighborhood probably on 10/30 (weather depending), but I wanted to get the basic information up here right away.
I have been contacted by Tim Crockett, local engineer and owner of Crockett Engineering Consultants here in Columbia. Here are some excerpts from his emails:
I have a client who has recently purchased the parcel of land in which was the location of the landscaping business located on the east side of Old 63 between Gordon and McAllister Streets. My client desires to develop a portion of this property and will need to seek approval of a C-P Development Plan as well as an adjustment to the zoning.
Before we take this request to the City, we would like to meet with the neighbors of the area to present our plan and get public input. We strongly feel that we need to meet with the neighbors before we make any request.
* * *
The purpose of this meeting is to present to the neighbors what we would like to construct on the property, what we are preserving, and how we propose to be neighbor friendly while still doing business as a commercial development. While we are proposing our development to the neighbors, in return we would like to get input from the neighbors. We would like to take this input and try to create our plan with that mind.
The meeting will be next Wednesday, Nov. 4th, starting at 5:30 PM at the Oakland Senior Center, 805 Old Highway 63 N (across from the parcel of land in question, next to the Access Arts building).
I am not sure just exactly what kind of business they want to put there. I have heard a *rumor* that it is an auto repair shop. But we’ll have to see what they actually tell us at the meeting. I think that it is good that Mr. Crockett is taking the initiative to contact us (and the Benton-Stephens Neighborhood Association) to arrange a meeting at this point in the process, but beyond that I have no information or opinion on the matter yet.
Do try and attend the meeting next Wednesday, so we can hear what they have to say. Afterward we can set up a Neighborhood Association meeting to discuss the matter amongst ourselves.
Jim Downey
I should have gotten these up earlier, but for one reason and another I had a rather hard week. So, apologies for the delay and here ya go.
From Leigh Britt, Volunteer Coordinator:
- NLP 2010: Planning for the 2010 class is well underway and registration is now open. I hope you will let your neighbors and friends know about your experience and encourage them to apply. Details and an application are available at: http://www.gocolumbiamo.com/Volunteer/NeighborhoodLeadershipProgram.php.
- Keys to the City – Oct. 27: We invite you to the third installment of Keys to the City on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 5-8:30 at Riechmann Pavilion at Stephens Lake Park. There will be council office hours and an information fair from 5-7 p.m. followed by a discussion of infill development and the new Office of Neighborhood Services from 7-8:30 p.m. Learn more at: http://www.gocolumbiamo.com/Volunteer/KeystotheCity.php
From Timothy Teddy, Director, Department of Planning and Development:
As you may have read, we are hosting a second “congress of neighborhood associations” at the Riechmann Pavilion in Stephens Lake Park (2300 East Walnut) on Tuesday, October 27, 2009 from 7 PM to 8:30 PM. The “congress” follows an information fair and City Council office hours from 5:00 to 7:00 PM as part of the Keys to the City. More at:
http://www.gocolumbiamo.com/Volunteer/KeystotheCity.phpAs a theme for the congress, we have selected “Growing Up, Not Out: a dialogue on ‘infill’ development.” We will display a map of selected sites throughout the City that have had some form of development approval (zoning, plan, or subdivision) but to the casual observer are simply vacant and unused property. We will moderate a dialogue on “infill” development to learn how neighborhoods may become more involved and informed on the progress of these often promising but sensitive development locations. Tell us how we can make “infill” (loosely defined as new development in already settled areas) a success.
Our choice of this topic is based on the comments received that perhaps the “congress” ought to be involved in the comprehensive plan and suggestions in the vision process that we educate the public about infill development as a growth management strategy.
In addition, Leigh Nutter will introduce the City’s new Office of Neighborhood Services and take your questions and comments.
From Karl Skala, Third Ward Councilman:
Friday, October 23, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEThis morning I filed a nominating petition to run for re-election for Columbia’s Third Ward City Council seat. I have enjoyed representing the Third Ward on the council for the last two and a half years.
I want to continue to help make our neighborhoods safer, improve our roads and city services, develop more thoughtful city planning, and create a more responsive city government.
If re-elected, I will continue to make myself available to hear constituents’ concerns and ideas, and to work hard on behalf of the Third Ward and all the people of Columbia.
Karl Skala
Columbia Third Ward City Councilman
573-474-2195
SkalaforCouncil@yahoo.com
I will be attending the “Keys to the City” event on Tuesday, and invite any and all interested neighbors to join me.
Hope to see you there!
Jim Downey
As we have discussed, we will be having a neighborhood-wide garage sale next Saturday, October 10. It is being coordinated by our Secretary, Sarah Catlin-Dupuy, so if you have any further questions, please contact her. Here are the basic details:
Hours of the sale will be 8:00 to 4:00 3:00 on Saturday only. There will be a large sign at the main entrance to the neighborhood a few days ahead of time to get people interested. We plan to have smaller additional signs directing people to continue throughout the neighborhood to make sure they get to all the locations. There will also be ads in both the Tribune and the Missourian.
Every household is welcome to join in. You will need to set up your own things and try to have them out and ready by the 8:00 start time. The really serious yard-sale customers tend to come early. We’re hoping for good weather, but you might think about what you’ll do if it is raining.
Hope everyone who takes part has a good sale!
Passing this along:
Saturday a.m. OFFICE HOURS at SVEN’S KAFE′ & GALLERY (Please note the recent move to Sven’s due to the closing of the Artisan!)
Third Ward City Councilman Karl Skala invites you to join him in conversation at Sven’s Kafe′ this Saturday, September 19th. Please stop by and share your ideas, concerns, comments and/or questions, 3rd ward and/or citywide.
WHERE? Sven’s Kafe′ & Gallery, 110 Orr Street, Suite 101
WHEN? 8:30-11:00 a.m.
DAY? All Saturdays before regular Council Meetings held on
the 1st and 3rd Mondays of each month.WHO? Everyone is Welcome!
ANNOUNCEMENTS!
Lots of issues these days, e.g., the Mayoral race, the proposed downtown Community Improvement District (CID) and the continuing controversy swirling around general surveillance cameras! I would love to have your feedback. This is also the month that difficult City Budget discussions take center stage! Stop by for a cup of coffee and some engaging conversation!
–
If you can’t make it to my Saturday morning Office Hours at Sven’s Kafe′ but would like assistance, additional information or your questions answered, just send me an e-mail at ward3@gocolumbiamo.com If you wish, I’ll also put you on my personal e-mail distribution list.
Jim Downey
From our Councilman:
Ward 3 Neighborhood Safety Summit and Town Hall Meeting!
WHEN: Thursday, September 3rd at 6:30 till 8:30 p.m. or as questions & comments remain!
WHERE: Blue Ridge Elementary School Cafeteria, 3700 Woodland Dr.Come meet our 3rd Ward Councilman, Karl Skala and several city leaders including Police Chief Ken Burton and a cadre of command staff and patrol officers.
Come find out how we can support a Neighborhood Watch Program and work together to reduce CRIME in North East Columbia. Find out what you can do to help city officials combat CRIME in your neighborhood. This is your opportunity to participate – please come and bring your neighbors!
More info: Karl Skala @ 474-2195 or Ward3@GoColumbiaMo.com
Martha and I won’t be able to attend, but I hope that someone from our neighborhood will be able to be there and will report on it.
Jim D.
Hi everyone!
I just wanted to give a brief recap of our neighborhood party and business meeting last night.
First off – thanks to all who came. Special thanks to Jayne and Greg Wack for hosting the event on their lovely patio, and to Bob Hutton for helping supply the tables and coolers!
We had a great turnout for the party, about 75 people all told, when you include our guests from the Police and Fire Departments. KOMU did a segment on the news last night about the city-wide event, which pretty much featured nothing but footage from our party. If you didn’t see it, you can check it out here, with a related story on the Night Out here (that’s Greg burnin’ the burgers in the photo!). The food was excellent, and the company was even better. We got to meet our new neighbors (perhaps a spotlight introduction on them later) and everyone certainly seemed to enjoy themselves.
The business portion of our evening was brief but productive. First, Jean Leonatti, current President of the Country Club Board gave an update on the latest things happening with the Club and answered some questions. We had reports from the CCENA officers (short version – everything is going fine, we haven’t spent any money, and the new directory will be available soon), and then we made a change to the Bylaws to make the annual $5.00 membership fee entirely optional. We discussed re-activating the Neighborhood Watch program (more on that to come), and street lighting. The possibility of expanding the Association to include the adjoining neighborhood to the north was discussed, but we decided not to act on that at this time. Then, since there were no new candidates for office, we elected the current slate of officers to serve another term. (Perhaps we’ll get out on good behaviour next year.)
The meeting was over by 7:20, and a goodly number of people stayed for another hour or so to chat and enjoy the delightful evening.
Again, thanks to all who were able to attend.
Jim Downey
