Residents on Cambridge Drive are doing all they can — including filing an appeal on Monday — to fight the potential rezoning of about 9.5 acres that would allow 36 duplexes to be built in their neighborhood of single-family homes. Residents say they weren’t given proper notice of the request for rezoning, and they have numerous concerns that center around the neighborhood being incapable of handling an influx of as many as 72 families.
During a Thursday meeting, despite complaints from a handful of residents who knew about the request, the Owensboro Metropolitan Planning Commission voted 7-1 in favor of rezoning land on Cambridge Drive and Sturbridge Place from single-family residential to multi-family residential. Developer Gary Boswell submitted the request.
Jessica Rhineburger’s family has lived on Cambridge Drive for 20 years now. She was not at the meeting Thursday because “most of our neighborhood had absolutely no idea” there was a rezoning request for the land.
“Gary had gone around and talked to some people in our neighborhood when he started getting the land ready, and told everyone he was going to be building single-family residences on the lot,” Rhineburger said. “That’s all I’ve ever heard until today when Owensboro Times posted their story.” (Read the story here.)
Once the news began to spread, Rhineburger said the neighborhood got together Friday to discuss their options. They also went to the property in question and took pictures of the signs that were posted about the rezoning meeting.
“You can’t read them. They were crumbled and closed. You have to get onto the property and open up the signs to see what they even said. So no one knew that there was going to be a meeting ahead of time or that he was wanting it rezoned,” she said, saying much of that was likely due to recent storms.
Rhineburger said she also talked to a neighbor whose home touches the property that could be rezoned. Residents whose property directly touches the land on a rezoning request must be notified by certified mail. According to Rhineburger, the resident said she got a notification saying something needed to be dropped off but that she wasn’t home to sign for it, so she never found out what it was.
Rhineburger is essentially leading the charge for the neighborhood in their fight back, as she’s already filled out the paperwork for an appeal and plans to turn it in Monday morning.
While some residents said they are worried about how their home’s property value might be affected, Rhineburger said that’s not her primary concern.
“I’m more concerned with them building these duplexes and bringing in a lot of renters to our very, very small neighborhood that can’t sustain it,” she said. “We don’t even have lines on our street. Our kids play in the road. We have our basketball goals on the road. Adding that many new residents in this tiny little subdivision, it’s not going to work.”
Rhineburger is also the president of the East View Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization. As such, she’s also concerned that such a high number of families moving into the same school district could be a major strain on the school.
Rhineburger pointed out that the residents welcome new development, but if it comes via a few dozen duplexes.
“The neighborhood was extremely excited about having some new housing options. … So it was really upsetting to read that this morning, to find out that it was going to change the whole dynamics of our neighborhood if it goes through,” she said.
Once the appeal is filed, the OMPC will send all the information to Daviess County Fiscal Court. The parties would be given a chance to state their cases in front of the County Commission, which would then make the final determination on whether to uphold or overturn the OMPC decision to rezone the land. The timeline on when the issue will be addressed during a Fiscal Court meeting is unclear
After the news was shared Friday morning, some residents made note that the OMPC planning staff actually recommended that the rezoning request be denied.
The report, which can be found here, listed the following in their Findings of Fact:
1. Staff recommends denial because the proposal is not in compliance with the community’s adopted Comprehensive Plan;
2. The subject properties are located in an Urban Residential Plan Area where Urban Mid-density uses appropriate in limited locations;
3. The proposed use as duplexes conforms to the criteria for urban residential development;
4. The proposal is not a logical expansion of existing R-3MF zoning as it is surrounded by single family zoning; and,
5. The subject properties are located within the middle of a single family residential subdivision developed in the mid 1960’s and all properties involved are located along local streets, Cambridge Drive and Sturbridge Place.
Melissa Evans, OMPC Associate Director of Planning, said while it’s a “recommendation,” it’s based solely on a limited set of facts and criteria based off of the Comprehensive Plan and Land Use Map (a public document is available here).
Evans said when someone comes in to ask about zoning changes or developments, the staff shows them that Comprehensive Plan and Land Use Map.
“We tell them up front as the staff if we can recommend it for approval or if we would have to recommend it for denial,” she said. “So, when we’re honest and upfront with people about what the map looks like to begin with, we don’t get a ton of applications because people know upfront what our recommendation is going to be before they submit the application.”
So Boswell knew there was a recommendation to deny.
“He knew before he ever submitted his application,” Evans said. “He came in and met with us as the staff, and we showed him the criteria, that it didn’t meet the criteria, and that we wouldn’t be able to recommend it for approval.”
But, Evans said, it’s not uncommon for the OMPC to still vote in favor of rezoning when the recommendation suggests otherwise. She said applicants can present facts and information beyond what is taken into consideration by the staff, giving the OMPC more with which to work.
“The Planning Commission’s job is to take our staff report and the recommendation into consideration, but also take into consideration anything that happens at the meeting,” Evans said. “So we may not have all of the information that the Planning Commission has when we make a recommendation, because we’re solely basing it off of the application that’s been submitted and basing it off of that Comprehensive Plan and Land Use Map. So they have more information than we have, and they have the luxury of hearing both sides of the story from the applicant and anyone opposed to it.”
The Commission voted 7-1 in favor of rezoning, indicating they felt Boswell presented enough facts for them to approve the request. Commissioners voting in favor were Jay Velotta, Jason Strode, Manuel Ball, Lewis Jean, Fred Reeves, Skyler Stewart, and Irvin Rogers. The lone no vote came from Greg Raque, while Jason Gasser and Angela Hardaway were not present.
Much of Boswell’s facts were examples of other neighborhoods that had both single-family residences and duplexes.
Most notably, he said there are 20-22 duplexes in the Countryside neighborhood near County Heights Elementary. Boswell said the duplexes were in the middle of Countryside and the newer Stonegate neighborhood that is connected by Boulder Lane. However, based on the image presented during Thursday’s meeting the duplexes are primarily only along a section of Countryside Drive that is on the easternmost part of the neighborhood.
Boswell also addressed the fact that he originally announced plans to build single-family houses but is now planning to construct duplexes.
He said the cost to build about a 1,400-1,500 square foot house including the lot “jumped exponentially” in the last 1 to 1.5 years.
Boswell also said he could have built single-family modular homes or double-wide mobile homes, which are both allowed with no conditional use permit, but he didn’t want to do that. That left him with the options of single-family homes, which he said is no longer feasible because they wouldn’t be affordable, or duplexes.
Boswell said that he wants to provide an affordable living area on the east end of town.
“There is little or no affordable housing on the east side of the county. I’m gonna do my best to make this something that we can be proud of,” Boswell said during Thursday’s meeting.
