Olivette panel approves new home at 15 Bonaire Drive, directs stormwater meeting with neighbors

The Olivette City Planning and Community Development Commission voted unanimously May 15 to approve a site plan, community design and concept stormwater management review for a new single‑family house at 15 Bonaire Drive.

The vote followed staff presentations raising concern about a storm sewer discharge and erosion channel that runs through the rear yards of the Bonaire subdivision and eventually connects to the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District system. Carlos Trejo, director of Planning and Community Development for Olivette City, told commissioners staff will require the petitioner to meet with the city’s stormwater consultant and the owner of 13 Crosswinds Drive before the petitioner submits for a building permit to review the discharge and any needed mitigations.

Why it matters: Staff said much of the stormflow entering the rear of 15 Bonaire derives from a network of inlets and pipes beyond the petitioning lot; the city flagged the location as a potential priority for future stormwater improvements. Commissioners and residents said they wanted steps taken now to minimize local erosion and downstream impacts before construction begins.

Staff reported the lot at 15 Bonaire is 19,991 square feet with a width of roughly 138 feet and a depth near 144 feet. Staff described the existing downstream channel behind the yards as mostly a concrete or riprap run generally shallow (about 2 feet deep in typical locations) and three feet wide in the concrete portions. Carlos Trejo said the throat where an underground pipe opens into that channel lies at or near the rear of the 15 Bonaire parcel and that 95% of the contributing drainage is off‑site.

James E. Coster, a trustee of the Bonaire subdivision homeowners association, spoke during public comment and said "some of the neighbors have expressed concern over the size of the house relative to the lot size. So you just want to ensure that the setbacks on all sides of the house are respected and that there are no problems with the stormwater plan." Coster said he had not personally documented previous drainage failures but that neighbors have reported water coming from the Berkeley area into the back yards.

The approved motion, moved by Sam Wallach and seconded by Tim Spiegelglass, accepted the petition "as presented in the memorandum from the Department of Planning Community Development dated 05/15/2025 subject to any staff conditions noted therein." The roll call vote recorded five approvals, zero no votes.

Staff clarified that the approval is subject to standard conditions and to the on‑site coordination meeting with the stormwater consultant and the adjacent property owner at 13 Crosswinds Drive so that any necessary revisions to the stormwater design can be made before a building permit application is filed. Commissioners also noted the petitioner and the HOA had provided written confirmation that the subdivision had voted to approve amended designs required by the HOA process.

The commission briefly noted that 13 Crosswinds Drive has a separate transaction pending and the new owner is expected to come before the commission within a month, which staff said presents an opportunity for joint mitigations. The commission did not direct construction of additional off‑site infrastructure; staff said larger capacity improvements would involve MSD and future master‑plan work.

What’s next: staff will schedule the required on‑site meeting among the petitioner, the stormwater consultant and the owner of 13 Crosswinds Drive, and the petitioner must complete any resulting revisions before submitting for a building permit. The commission record shows the petition was approved 5‑0.