A. 7:00 P.M. EVENING AGENDA
B. MEETING CALLED TO ORDER BY THE MAYOR
C. MATTERS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING
1. Comprehensive Plan Amendment CP-7-22: New Bern Station Area Planning
2. Rezoning Z-92-22: New Bern Station Area Planning, 744 properties along New Bern Avenue between Downtown and Hedingham Boulevard / Freedom Drive (Districts B & C)
The two items were combined in the staff presentation, while public comments were handled separately, with 8 minutes per side for CP-7-22 and one hour per side for Z-92-22.
Two individuals spoke against CP-7-22 and three spoke in favor.
More than 30 individuals signed up to speak in opposition to Z-92-22 and more than 30 individuals signed up to speak in support.
It should be noted that, despite comments from staff and supporters, those speaking in opposition to the two agenda items were NOT in favor of or suggesting maintaining the status quo; their main argument was that change needed to be implemented carefully to ensure that the desired outcome would be achieved.
At the end of the January 30 Public Hearing, Council approved Comp Plan amendment CP-7-22. But the approval will mean nothing if it isn’t funded and implemented, and if metrics aren’t gathered to understand its impact and whether additional modifications are needed.
Council took no action on Z-92-22 and held it over until their March 5 meeting. It is not clear whether additional public comment will be allowed at the continued hearing.
Based on the conversation at the council table after public comments completed, Livable Raleigh is cautiously optimistic that council is heading in a positive direction.
A few comments we heard:
- Council will work on modifying the TOD before taking any action on upzoning.
- The TOD will not be mapped over properties that are covered by an NCOD (Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District).
- The council will start their efforts with commercial properties and city-owned properties, leaving residential properties to be worked on later.
- Council asked staff to break up the corridor into smaller sections that can be worked on individually in order to make decisions based on the different characteristics of different segments of the corridor.
- And they appeared to understand that they need to be careful with how much height they give away to make sure the affordable density bonuses are getting used.
D. ADJOURNMENT
1. Adjourn Meeting