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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
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
I attended the “informational meeting” last night concerning rezoning the 18 acre piece of land north the WalMart on Conley Road where the Highway Department used to have a maintenance facility. The attendees were the attorney representing the owners of the property (TKG Conley Road Investments, LLC), the city staff from the Planning office, members of the Country Club Board, and me.
The meeting ran about 90 minutes. Here are the facts which emerged:
- 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.
- The City staff have not finished their evaluation, but such will be done soon and the full documentation will be available from the City on or about December 6.
- The Planning & Zoning Commission will address the matter at their meeting on December 10.
- The matter will then go to the City Council, for public hearing, at their first meeting in January (the 4th).
Most of the rest of the meeting was informative, but not particularly enlightening. Currently, there is not much in the way of documentation to see. We were told that the owners of the property and the City were negotiating an agreement concerning the necessary infrastructure, easements for trails along the back (west) side of the property, and some kind of “buffer zone” along the west and north sides of the property where it would be adjacent to the golf course. The TDD currently in force for the Sam’s/WalMart shopping complex has been (or will be) extended north to cover this property. The representative for the owners said that there were currently no specific plans for developing the land or selling it.
Now, a couple of things. C-3 zoning would mean that beyond the agreement negotiated with the City concerning infrastructure, et cetera, and subject to City building and environmental codes, the owner would be free to develop the property as they see fit, without the need or opportunity for further public involvement. And while we were told that the owner currently has no plans for either development or sale of the property, once this zoning is approved, they can change their mind in an instant. There was some discussion back and forth concerning whether Conley Road would be 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, but the representative for the owners said that currently they have no plans to seek this and no power to force a sale through condemnation or other means – that would have to come from either the City or the State.
It’ll be interesting to see what exactly is in the documentation from the City. Until then, I am withholding judgment on whether or not this is a matter of serious concern to our neighborhood, though of course you are free to form your own opinions and act on them as you see fit.
Jim Downey
Edit to update, 11/22/09: It seems that TKG Conley Road Investments has withdrawn their application for C-3 rezoning, citing “unexpected opposition”. Supposedly they will be re-applying for C-P rezoning. As I have more information, I will pass it along.
Cross posted to the Columbia Neighborhood Alliance Forum.
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!
