Summary of the October 30, 2003 Meeting of the Northside Neighborhood Conservation District Advisory Committee

Present: Committee Members: Chair Delores Bailey, Jeff Caiola, Linda Convissor, Tim Dempsey, Helen Galbreath, Sally Greene, Josh Gurlitz, Estelle Mabry, Mae McLendon, Mark Patmore, Velma Perry, Ruby Sinreich, Tom Tucker.

Planning Board Members: Chair Tim Dempsey, Vice Chair Coleman Day, Rebecca Boyles, Thatcher Freund, Nancy Gabriel, Sally Greene, Nancy Milio, Ruby Sinreich, Council Liaison Pat Evans

Staff Present: Than Austin, Loryn Barnes, Chris Berndt, David Bonk, Beth Dean, Emily Dickens, Roger Waldon

Absent: Jane Farrar, Vice Chair Esphur Foster, Rick Perry, Matthew Robbins, R.D. Smith

The Northside Neighborhood Conservation District Advisory Committee held a meeting on October 30, 2003 at 6:30 pm at the Chapel Hill Library. This was a joint meeting with the Chapel Hill Planning Board.

Community Development Coordinator Loryn Barnes reviewed the following schedule for development of the Committee’s recommendation for the Neighborhood Conservation District:

November 6, 2003 Regular meeting of the Northside Neighborhood Conservation District Advisory Committee to finalize recommendations

November 20, 2003 Northside Neighborhood Conservation District Advisory Committee to receive public comment on proposed recommendations

The proposed Northside Neighborhood Conservation District will also be discussed at the following meetings:

November 24, 2003 Northside Neighborhood Conservation District Advisory Committee report its recommendations to the Town Council

December 16, 2003 Planning Board to finalize its recommendations for a Northside Neighborhood Conservation District

January 21, 2004 Town Council to hold a public hearing on proposed Neighborhood Conservation District

Chair Delores Bailey stated that the purpose of this meeting was to get feedback from the Planning Board on the Committee’s progress to date. Ms. Bailey presented the Committee’s work to date. Members suggested using the presentation for the November 20 public forum and the November 24 Council meeting. It was also suggested that the presentation include pictures of more modern construction in the community that shows how developers have tried to build housing in keeping with the character of the community.

Planning Director Roger reviewed staff recommendations for maximum floor area ratio, maximum house size, building height, and impervious surface with the members of the Committee and the Planning Board.

The following comments were made during the meeting:

Maximum House Size

· Several of the members present felt that a maximum house size of 2,000 square foot house would be in keeping with the existing houses in the neighborhood.

· Roger Waldon explained that if someone wanted to build a house larger than the maximum square footage allowed, the owner would be required to obtain a Special Use Permit from the Council and would have to show how a public purpose would be served by making the exception. Mr. Waldon estimated the cost of the Special Use Permit Process to be approximately $20,000.

· As stated at the last meeting, adult children are not returning to the community with the intention of expanding their parent’s homes.

· A Planning Board Member suggested that the Committee consider an exception to allow larger homes on larger lots in order to meet the Committee’s goal of attracting families to the neighborhood.

Duplexes

· A Planning Board member suggested that if the proposed regulations and design standards were in place, duplexes could be built so they would not look like duplexes.

Other Comments

· A Planning Board member suggested that trees could be planted throughout the neighborhood to bring them more into character with other streets in the neighborhood.

· Members of the Committee said that residents may not want trees in front of their homes.

· Loryn Barnes explained that this would be an eligible use of the Town’s Neighborhood Revitalization Community Development Block Grant program.

· A Committee member stated that the proposed regulations for the Neighborhood Conservation District could drastically effect what can be done on small lots and may encourage demolishing existing houses and combining lots to build a bigger house

o Committee Members explained that the biggest house that could be built would be somewhere between 2,000 - 2,500 square feet regardless of the size of the lot.

Senior Transportation Planner David Bonk explained that the Town applied for an Active Living by Design grant and if awarded, funds would be used to survey the Northside neighborhood’s transportation system and to complete an assessment of barriers to increased mobility in the neighborhood. It was stated that such a survey and analysis could benefit residents of the Rogers Road neighborhood. It was explained that funding for this area is limited because it is outside of the Town limits.

The next meeting will be on November 6 at 6:00 at the Northside Senior Center.