Commission OKs rezoning and variances for two-phase Ford Avenue affordable housing project

Springdale planning commissioners voted unanimously Sept. 2 to approve rezoning and related variances for a two-parcel multifamily development called Ford Avenue Flats, clearing the way for a two-phase project that the developers say will produce roughly 138 housing units and preserve on-site wetlands.The commission approved a reduction of the planned-unit-development (PUD) minimum size from 10 acres to 6.7 acres for the southern parcel, granted variances on parking and perimeter landscaping, and approved the rezoning of both parcels from MF-16 to PUD; commissioners then approved the large-scale plan subject to staff comments. Why it matters: The project combines two adjacent developments into a single, complementary design intended to deliver deed-restricted affordable housing and preserve headwaters and ponded wetlands at the Spring Creek channel. Commissioners and staff pressed the developers on long-term maintenance of open space and wetlands, parking counts tied to unit mix and the project’s connectivity to nearby trails. The developer’s engineering and design team, represented by TJ Wells and Ryan King of ISG, described the two linked sites as a south parcel of about 6.7 acres and a north parcel of about 14.96 acres…