City Council Bends the Rules

Introduction

Litchford Forest zoning case Z-43-25 was scheduled for its public hearing to occur June 2 at the evening City Council meeting. But, due to inadequate public notice in the News & Observer, the hearing could not take place as planned. The same notice error happened with Text Change TCZ-02-26. That case followed the normal process and was rescheduled for July 7.

The Litchford Forest case took another path. One outside the normal process.

The applicant (developer) in the Z-43-25 case wanted to make changes to the conditions of the case, but missed the deadline to do so. From the UDO policy normal procedure would have been to reschedule the public hearing, and at that new date open the hearing to hear from all sides, and then council chooses between voting as-is, voting to defer for conditions to be added, or sending back to PC. Most likely the applicant wanted to add conditions because they knew they would lose the vote with the conditions as is. There would be no other reason to add conditions if you were assured the case would be approved.

What did the City Council do instead? As stated above, this council did NOT follow the normal process. Instead they did a HUGE favor for the applicant. They made a decision to allow the applicant to re-do the conditions and Planning Commission vote without first validating a reason to re-do or hearing that a different application would even make a difference to the concerns of the public.

It is important to note the Planning Commission already heard this case and voted 8 – 1 to DENY the request.

What’s the favor to the applicant? They avoid getting a denial vote from the City Council on the record of this case. And they get a chance for a do-over at the Planning Commission to erase the previous 8-1 denial vote and come back to City Council with a better result.

This is just one more example of the City Council bending over backwards for developers while putting neighbors through the gauntlet an additional time.

Often these cases are reported on and read by the public after the fact, but the public has an opportunity to stand with opposition to Z 43 25 at the planning commission meeting, scheduled for June 23, and again for the new hearing which will be scheduled at some point in the future. Email planning.commission@raleighnc.gov and citycouncilmembers@raleighnc.gov to deny Z-43-25 and show up as audience to support the neighbors.

Livable Raleigh Editorial Team

Below are the second round of comments from the neighbors in this case. You can read the previous comments here: Litchford Forest Neighbors Plead with City Council

PUBLIC COMMENTS

Leon Reich

Good Evening, Madam Mayor and Council Members!

I was a bit surprised to be returning to appeal for our community of neighbors and families on Johnsdale. The people of this community who are without the financial means to get lawyers to do battle have poured their hearts into gracious appeals for you to consider the damage and danger such a large development would mean to the quality of life.

The efforts by the developer to offer changes only after it appears he won’t be successful is an insult to us and the process. Do the changes to application change the conditions on the ground? Do the changes to the application give the city a reason to disregard our valid concerns?

Tonight we are all here to support yet another neighbor with concerns we have not yet covered. The perspective of those whose homes will directly abut the super silt fence. The people close to this development will be impacted in further ways that the rest of us might not be. We are here in numbers again to support Seth’s message specifically. You will hear about more wells, more septic tanks, more yard flooding, more creek erosion, more traffic concern, disruption to the environment etc…

What is new is the impact this poses as SCALE. This development is being dropped right on top of or in the middle of existing and protected by covenant homes. The privacy invasion, light disturbance, noise disruption, land disturbance affect the properties next door ten fold.

Would you allow your neighbor to subdivide into 16ft wide properties alongside your entire property? This is not asking 1 person to have 1 new nextdoor neighbor. This is asking 1 person to potentially have 15 balconies, windows, garages, etc… overlooking their entire lot.

Is this compatible with the existing neighborhood?

What are the cumulative impacts?

I appeal to you who have the power to help maintain at least some level of this precious quality of life for these families to vote to deny the rezoning of 6309 Litchford Road.

Thank You.

Seth Wells

Good Evening Mayor & Council,

I am here to talk in opposition to Z 43 25, my property is next to this property on Johnsdale. Literally next to my home.

Two doors down from here is my mother who is legally blind, father is older as well. I have a 7 year old who loves to play in the street and ride his bike. The proposal to turn this into R-10 and be literally in between multiple homes. It is very close to 4 different houses on Litchford and on Johnsdale and then two other houses on Johnsdale. There’s going to be 30 different homes looking into my backyard. I have a small child. Again I have a family that I am concerned about their safety, and what the difference is.

Now, that doesn’t mean I am not for development. I would love to see more housing and more homes. Our houses are actually very affordable for the Raleigh area, especially for where we are. The home my parents bought was $400,000, Brick, one-story, 3 bedroom, 2 baths, you can still get a nice home in North Raleigh for a normal price.

This area should be developed into single family homes, normal residential sized lots, made in the spirit of the community, which it all is.

If you have not had the opportunity before you vote on this, please come down our street. Come say hello, please stop by. See what it looks like.

Going down Litchford is insane. Getting out in the morning in traffic. Very crazy, Very dangerous. Our street is not very wide, even passing each other on Johnsdale is crazy to get out in the mornings. We have the school traffic, which I’m sure you’ve heard about which is going into the school.

All those kids, listen when I was 16 right, 25mph was the starting point. Speed bumps don’t help. Kids fly through the stop signs. It’s not good.

So think about it, when you are going to vote for this. Think about my kid, my 7 year old on his bike or his powerwheels.

We don’t have sidewalks, we have no curbs. It’s very dangerous for us and our families.

Eva Verlinden

Good Evening everyone,

My name is Eva Verlinden. When my husband and I started looking for a new home in 2009, we gave our realtor some very specific criteria:

We wanted a ranch home in an older neighborhood with good bones, larger lots and trees. After months of looking, we finally found our house on Johnsdale Rd. A surprising bonus for us was that a majority of the neighborhood was and still is using wells and septic systems, which we were very familiar with from our prior 2 homes.

I’m here tonight asking you to deny the rezoning case Z-43-25 because I am very concerned about how these additional homes will affect our wells and septic systems. I am not the only one with these concerns.

Our neighbor, Liz Polizzo spoke eloquently at the May 12th City Council meeting about how this development could affect her family’s health and safety. Because what she said was so important, I will be reiterating many of the points she made. We already have issues with standing water and yard flooding. Additional houses will mean additional runoff which will be a burden to the yards north of the property, including ours. Standing water near wells and septic systems could create a contamination risk.

If the developer moves forward with the plans for 6309 Litchford Rd, they will destroy a majority of the mature nature as they only have to leave 10% green space. Mature trees provide shade and are a natural filtration and absorption system. They slow runoff, reduce standing water and protect the groundwater we drink. Removing them increases the volume and speed of stormwater reaching our wells and septic systems.

Connecting to city water and sewer is not a solution to the well and septic concern, as our unique conditions would make it cost prohibitive. Many homes, including ours, have large setbacks from meters and sewer lines. Connections on the east side of the road require digging up the street. Many homes sit below grade, and would require a pump.

Connecting to city water and sewer could cost as much as $50,000 per household. The existing residents should not have to shoulder the burden of the costs or impacts for this development.

My neighbors and I have been against this rezoning from the start and strongly urge you to vote against rezoning case Z-43-25.

Thank You.

Vicki Reich

I am Vicki Reich, this is the third time I have come to speak to you about the rezoning. This whole process is totally new to me. Other than voting and researching who to vote for I have never been involved in politics. Or the government. I really feel like we’re insulting you by speaking about the issues of rezoning the lot on Litchford when you’ve heard it over and over.

I tried to think of a time when I have experienced something like this. Being a parent and a middle school teacher I have had many times had convincing talks with teens about something I didn’t think was wise. I remember telling my own teenagers, “You can’t see the whole picture.”

The purpose of a city planning is to rely on professionals and citizens to shape our future. The comprehensive plan covers it ALL! Many perspectives, policies, goals, actions to guide us. I feel it necessary for all of Raleigh to hear some quotes from these policies. The words are being manipulated to support development. If you flip the perspective the same words are available to support our efforts to deny this rezoning.

Land Use 2.6 All Amendments to the zoning map that significantly increase permitted density should be carefully evaluated to ensure that impacts in infrastructure capacity resulting from the projected intensification of development are adequately Mitigated.

Land Use 2.2 New development should use a more compact land use pattern to support the efficient provision of public services, preserve open space and reduce the negative impacts of low intensity development.

Land Use 5.1 New development should acknowledge existing buildings, and the surrounding area. It should be implemented without adverse impacts on local character and appearance.

Land Use 8.5 New Homes within residential neighborhoods should respect the existing scale. Residential neighborhoods that currently consist of largely detached homes can accommodate additional housing types but these housing types should be similar scale to existing detached homes.

Land Use 8.3 Recognize the importance of balancing the need to increase the housing supply and expand neighborhood commerce with the parallel need to protect neighborhood character, preserve historic resources and restore the environment.

I do respect your Decision making skills and I do believe that you will see the obvious reasons to deny the rezoning of 6309 Litchford Road.

Our community will stick together.

Thank You.

Sheila Read

Hello, Thank you for the opportunity to speak. I am one of the many neighbors here tonight to talk about the rezoning at 6309 Litchford Road. This is my first opportunity to do so and I am happy to have that.

I am very concerned. I have been a homeowner for 14 years in the neighborhood on Ravenhill which dead ends into Johnsdale. So we depend on Johnsdale Road for access to the outside world. My husband and I were attracted to this neighborhood for the character, including the large mature oak trees. Some of the largest oak trees I’ve seen in the city are in this neighborhood and are on this property in question. We were attracted because of its walkability and because of its neighborhood character.

I remember my husband and I talked to each other about being glad to find a neighborhood where there was already development all the way around, so there’s no way there’s going to be additional development coming in. We were sorely mistaken on that.

One of my biggest concerns is about the oak trees. As you all know, we are the city of oaks. That is key to our city’s identity. Dozens of businesses use the oak tree as their marketing and branding. This property has at least a dozen mature oak trees, many of which are almost as big or bigger than the ones across the street in Nash Square. So we are not just talking about ordinary sized trees that will be lost.

Oaks are a keystone species, which means that they are essential for wildlife. They also provide the ecosystem benefits, which my neighbor described, especially absorbing hundreds of gallons of water during storms and mitigating soil erosion and run off. This is a huge issue already. There is standing water at the intersection of Ravenhill and Johnsdale after even minor rain storms and standing water in the ditches. And we are going to be losing open land, going from a large property with one house and a barn to only 10% green space. There’s potential for an enormous amount of runoff and erosion.

I’ve been looking at the City of Raleigh planning documents and seeing numerous references to finding opportunities to preserve mature existing tree stands. Well, we have one right here, and I invite anybody, before this vote, if you have not already, please come and see the stand of mature trees, especially on the southern boundary of the site. And I would like at least for whatever type of development does happen to be sure that there is a plan in place for conserving as many of these trees as possible.

I am also concerned, as other people have stated, about a change in zoning that seems incompatible with the development plan’s emphasis for orderly growth with adequate infrastructure, including drainage.

Larissa Greene

Hello Madam Mayor and Council Members,

Everytime a rezoning comes before the city, it has the power to reshape the streets we drive, the creeks that run behind our homes, the safety of our kids walking to school, and the character of the places we love. These decisions happen in public–the people who live here have a voice.

I’m asking all of Raleigh–as a neighbor, as a parent, as someone who cares about the future of Raleigh–please pay attention.

Decisions that affect neighborhoods, families, and property owners must be guided by integrity–not by influence, or a desired result.

When you look at the roads surrounding Z 43 25, 6309 Litchford, not a single one is even near a city standard. The homes that will be impacted by stormwater use wells and septic systems. There is no stormwater infrastructure to serve this development after the water leaves its retention area. The amount of increase in impervious surface poses a serious risk. My own home sits less than 15 feet from the creek bank.

Forget about R-10 & R-6 numbers. Just look at the impacts that are already entitled at R-4. Even that is out of scale with the existing neighborhood. There are 59 homes with driveways on Johnsdale Road spread over 49 acres. R-4 is 32 homes on 3.79 acres which will increase Johnsdale residences by 54% on only 7% of the total land.

Litchford Forest has covenants intended to protect our neighborhood scale and character.

The shape of the lot lines surrounding 6309 Litchford presents a significant ethical burden. The proposed density asks one property to potentially absorb 16 new neighbors along their entire side line, imposing a severe invasion of privacy and a decline in quality of life on property owners with covenants specifically meant to protect against such intensity. Furthermore, unlike standard detached homes that position windows to avoid intruding on neighbors, the townhomes anticipated by this density lack side windows, concentrating the visual and auditory impact.

Rezonings aren’t just about land. They’re about quality of life. They’re about safety. They’re about protecting what works and fixing what doesn’t. They’re about making sure growth doesn’t come at the expense of the people already here.

We believe that thoughtful growth and respect for neighborhoods can coexist. We believe that our voices are being heard.

The right decision for Z 43 25 is to deny.

Does Raleigh care about neighborhoods and its long-term citizens over profits when the opposition is clear, documented on public record and properly presented?

I have hope we are cared for.

Click on images below to see current conditions on Johnsdale Road. This infrastructure cannot handle any increases.