Residents ask Warrenton City to revisit R3 zoning, request grandfathering and builder input

Two residents used the public-comment period at the March 18 Warrenton City Board of Aldermen meeting to ask elected officials to revisit recent changes to the city’s R3 zoning rules and to ask that the board and Planning and Zoning Commission hold a meeting that includes local builders.

Michael Schlenther, a Timber Drive resident, said his neighborhood has been developed as a mixed-use area over decades and that zoning changes now prevent development of remaining vacant lots in a manner he said would “align with the character of the surrounding area.” He told the board he is building 10 multifamily units approved under a conditional use permit and asked for a meeting with the board and Planning and Zoning to “explore potential solutions” that would allow the neighborhood to be completed cohesively.

At length, Clifton Wolf, who identified himself as a local developer and longtime resident, urged the board to include builders in any review of the proposed building-code and zoning changes. He described recent and historical developments he said he had a role in — “2 fourplexes and 1 duplex” under construction and about 47 acres he has helped assemble — and said the city’s changes to the R3 rules have created uncertainty for projects already in process. Wolf repeated a request for a grandfather clause to protect lots already platted and said repeated rule changes had forced engineers’ work to be discarded.

Wolf said that, in his view, recent code changes had added roughly 200 square feet to a typical house footprint and increased side setbacks, which he said raises building costs and changes house forms. He also said he understood that R3 rules had been shifted between allowing multifamily and single-family development at different times, and he cited comments attributed to the city attorney, Christopher Grayville, during previous meetings explaining the city’s intent and a provision to allow already-platted subdivisions to include duplexes.

City Administrator Brandy Walters acknowledged the speakers’ frustration, said the city has held work sessions and discussions with Planning and Zoning, and committed to scheduling a meeting with P&Z and the board “within the next two weeks or by the next meeting.” Walters and other board members said they were trying to balance input from builders and community concerns and that the city is still working through grandfathering criteria; no specific grandfathering policy or deadline was adopted at the meeting.

No formal action or vote occurred on zoning changes during the meeting; the statements were made during the public-comment period and a subsequent exchange with the mayor and staff.

Why it matters: Changes to local zoning and building-code requirements affect the economics and feasibility of housing and multifamily projects, active subdivision plats, and individual lot development. Speakers said uncertainty and repeated rule changes are causing engineering costs to be wasted and are delaying projects already permitted or under review.

Other meeting context: Two residents spoke at length during public comment about the R3 changes; the discussion included references to prior Planning & Zoning and board work sessions. City staff said they will follow up with the speakers and with P&Z; no ordinance, regulation, or fee was adopted during the public-comment segment.