08/27/07 Council Meeting Minutes

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REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 27, 2007 prosper. River Park will not develop as a community it needs families, you won't get families if you don't have homes with yards and places for those children to play and grow. They won't have the children that are needed to attend the area schools, play in the City Parks, go to the zoo or attend the local college. River Park will eventually fade and all that will be left will be multi-family homes with people going to work and spending their dollars some place else. She hoped that the Council would do what is best for River Park and vote no to the rezoning. Mr. Dennis Frank, 3420 Northside Blvd., South Bend, Indiana, stated that he lives east of the proposed development. He stated that two years ago there was a petition with over 300 names of people who were opposed to this rezoning, not to a specific site plan but the rezoning in general. He has really seen no evidence that the majority of those people have change their mind other than that they have been through this process so many times and the proposed developed has been postponed for over two years, it seems like the petitioner is trying to wear the residents down by coming to all the meetings and then when they get there just postpone the project because things are not going in their favor. Mr. Frank stated that he is very concerned with the setback requirements. It was said that grade would have to be raised on the property by the river. If you raise grade say 6' and install a 6' fence, now the grade is higher than the fence, plus you have to make that change within the 12' and this is going to be a very steep slope. He just doesn't see proper screening being able to be met on that slope. Mr. Frank stated that he has been told first that they won't have to raise the grade and now is being told that the grade will have to be raised. He reiterated that he is against this project, however if the Council votes in favor of this project that they get written commitments from Mr. Mihalche with larger setbacks. Mr. Ron Hively, 3504 Northside Blvd., South Bend, Indiana, stated that he doesn't understand why they keep going through this. He stated that it has been a waste of the Council's time and the residents of the neighborhood. He stated that he is very much against this project, this is not what the neighbors want, they want single family residential homes on that property. Mr. Hively stated that they have discussed the extra traffic that would be added, building on a flood plain, the setbacks, etc. He questioned why the Council allows this bill to just keep being continued time and time again. There was no one else present wishing to speak in opposition to this bill. In rebuttal, Mr. Danch advised that the flood plain issue that has been discussed before there is a portion of the site has the floodway on it down by the St. Joseph River. There is also a portion of the site that is considered in the flood plain. Any buildings that are built on this project site if they were anywhere near the floodplain would have to be 2' above the 100 year floodplain in order not be required not to have insurance. The floodway area is strictly prohibited. Mr. Danch stated that they had talked with the DNR and have sent copies of the site plan, the original site plan that they had done on the site and the DNR said as long as they stayed outside of the floodway that there were no permits required for what they were asking to be able to do. Mr. Danch advised that they will most likely still send them copies of the plan once they do the engineering work on this particular development. Regarding the rezoning proposal, over half the site if MF1 which allows for the development that they are asking to be done. Basically, the portions on the east and west sides of the site which are presently zoned SF2 and that is what they are asking to be rezoned to the MF1 District. The request regarding the side yard setback what they had mentioned two years ago on the 20' was under a different plan that was also the proposal to do condominiums. What the residents were concerned about at that time were rental units. Mr. Danch stated that they have now changed to 24 single-family homes, these are not rental units, they are single family attached houses. Because they have changed the development they also changed the size of the buildings that they are using, these are larger than what the original plan had of 28 units. They believe that the residents wanted single family and that is what they are proposing for this type of development. They do have the setbacks of 22' along the northern boundary and are asking for the 12' down along where the river is. That is away from any of the adjacent residence. The adjacent residences have their building closer to Northside Blvd. Under the MF1 district they are actually allowed to go down to 6' for a side yard setback. So