Planning staff told the Assembly Committee of the Whole on July 17 that a property-owner-initiated ordinance would rezone eight lots in Pleasant Places Subdivision from Rural Estates 4 (RE4) to Rural Estates 2 (RE2) to prevent creation of nonconforming lots after a concurrent replat.

Planner Anduin McElroy said the request affects 35.39 acres and would keep the existing groundwater-damage-protection (GWP) overlay unchanged. "The primary difference between the two zones is lot size — RE4 requires a minimum nominal lot of four acres, RE2 requires two acres," McElroy said. The owner had asked to realign lot lines to enlarge a buffer around his home; several lots created by the replat would fall below the RE4 minimum but would be legal under RE2.

McElroy told the Assembly the rezone petition was signed by every owner within the rezone area to avoid any appearance of a spot zone, and that the concurrent replat was approved by the Planning Commission on May 21. A staff traffic study concluded any additional development would have minimal impact and could be absorbed by existing infrastructure, he said.

The Planning Commission voted 7-0 on May 27 to recommend approval. Staff said the request conforms to the Salcha-Badger Road Area Plan's rural suburban residential designation and to the borough comprehensive plan, and that five of the resulting lots would remain large enough to be subdivided in the future.

Why it matters: The rezone adjusts the official minimum lot-size standard to match a private replat and avoid creating nonconforming parcels; the change affects rural residential land use, potential future subdivision and sewer/well assumptions in the Badger Road area.