Council sends Deepwood rezoning to ballot after public hearing; asks for more details

Council President Filipiak presided over a public hearing June 17 on ordinance 25-O-053, a request to rezone about 12.7 acres at 8245 Deepwood Boulevard (permanent parcel 16A0050000040) from R-4 single-family residential to R-10 multifamily residential and to submit the rezoning to the November ballot. After presentations from city planning staff and the applicant and public comments from a nearby condominium association, council approved the ordinancefor first reading and directed staff to return with additional information by the July 1 meeting.

The planning director, Cantanza Bridal, told council the application proposes 33 townhouse-style buildings with a mix of 2- to 4-unit attached homes. Each unit footprint is about 1,200 square feet and will include an attached two-car garage and basement. The applicant has stated the units would be sold as fee-simple lots; the developer proposes 110 units though R-10 zoning allows up to 127 units on the site at 10 units per acre. The preliminary plan shows 80 parking spaces, a 1.39-acre recreation area (about 10% of the site), a stormwater pond at the north end, a 50-foot landscape buffer along Interstate 90, and setbacks of 25 feet from the edge of pavement and 20 feet between buildings and to neighboring properties.

The applicant, David Novak (9114 Tyler Boulevard, Mentor), said, "Kathy basically said everything I was going to say," and described the project as "Deepwood Place," reiterating the developer's plan for roughly 110 units, two-car garages for each unit, scattered additional parking and the planned recreational area.

Melissa Wallace, president of the Deepwood Condominium Association and a resident at 8228 Deepwood Boulevard, said the association is still reviewing documents and negotiating an emergency-access easement with the applicant. "We're still in the stages," Wallace said. She said the association expects to review a draft easement and other materials at an upcoming June 23 board meeting and asked why the city would be a party to any easement agreement.

Joe (law director) responded that the administration had identified an emergency-access drive at the southwest corner of the property and that the city being a party to the easement would protect public-safety access over time. "So that's the only reason for the city to be a party to the easement agreement, to make sure it never gets extinguished," Joe said, adding that without city standing the easement could be blocked or removed, frustrating the purpose of the emergency connection.

Council members pressed several informational gaps in the preliminary materials: sidewalks are not shown on the plan, the city's sanitary department letter indicated capacity for 105 units while the applicant now proposes 110, and the applicant has not yet identified a builder. The applicant said the original submittal showed 105 units and that a reconfiguration added a few units; he said he expected to provide additional documents by July 1. A city staff member said the required traffic study had been completed and "didn't indicate that there were any improvements necessary to the roadway network," though council members asked for the traffic study and queue/turn analyses to be provided to better assess impacts on Deepwood Boulevard and the nearby State Route 84 intersection.

The city's planning commission recommended approval of the rezoning and preliminary site plan at a May 22 public hearing by a 5-0 vote, Bridal noted. Council voted to give the ordinance its first reading and to schedule the next reading for July 1; the vote was recorded as unanimous at first reading.

The public hearing and council discussion emphasized three outstanding items council asked staff and the applicant to supply before final action: clarified sidewalk plans (and whether sidewalks will be required on one or both sides), a definitive sanitary-department capacity letter (clarifying 105 vs. 110 units), and a finalized emergency-access easement showing the city's rights and obligations. Council and the applicant also discussed possible architectural refinements and whether certain design changes could be provided by July 1, though the applicant said some aesthetic changes (rooflines, materials) might be harder to finalize by that date.

If council ultimately approves the rezoning following the required readings, the ordinance will be placed on the November ballot for voter approval as the ordinance text declares an emergency and seeks submission to the electorate.