Plan Commission sends Gramercy East multifamily plan to committee after residents raise maintenance and circulation concerns

The Carmel Plan Commission on Feb. 18 referred the Gramercy East development plan and ADLS application to the commission’s committee after residents requested follow-up on site maintenance in the earlier Gramercy West phase and raised questions about circulation, lighting and long-term bike storage.

Buckingham Properties is seeking development-plan and ADLS approval for about 20 acres in Gramercy East, including roughly 13 acres for multifamily buildings (nine new residential buildings totaling approximately 340 apartments, plus a clubhouse and garages) and about 6 acres for future townhomes. The proposal follows amendments to the Gramercy PUD approved last year.

John Davoshaewitz and Nathan Harris presented the plan, which includes renovation of four existing buildings, construction of nine new multifamily buildings of three stories each, a clubhouse with a pool and new sidewalks and pedestrian connections that will tie the site to existing Gramercy West and City Center Drive. “The architectural component of the request includes multifamily building architecture as well as associated lighting, landscaping, and signage,” Davoshaewitz said during the presentation.

Residents who live in Gramercy West told commissioners they support redevelopment but want Buckingham to address problems they said remain from the earlier phase. Michael Bencic, a Gramercy West resident, urged the developer to consider widening Kinzer Avenue or otherwise improving circulation; he described the existing stretch as very tight for two-way traffic when service vehicles pass. “This road is gonna become a main thorough way once they finish everything,” Bencic said, asking the commission to consider future widening or design changes.

Another resident, John Wilkin, said infrastructure and maintenance issues in Gramercy West — including nonworking streetlights, failing concrete curbs and poor landscaping — have not been resolved since Buckingham’s earlier work and asked the commission to pause further approvals until the developer remedies those items. Wilkin urged the commission to require Buckingham to “prove they have changed their ways” by fixing outstanding defects on Gramercy West before approving the next phase.

Staff recommended sending the proposal to committee. Planner Rachel Keasling said the current submittal is consistent with the PUD amendment and that staff will work with the petitioner on outstanding engineering, long-term bike-parking solutions and urban-forester suggestions for additional plantings and screening. Keasling flagged long-term bike parking as an open item that may be addressed through interior building space, bike lockers or conversion of garage lease spaces.

Petitioner representatives committed to work with staff and to provide a report back on outstanding maintenance items for Gramercy West. Davoshaewitz asked that the plan be forwarded to committee for further consideration; commissioners voted to send the matter to committee with return to the full commission for action.

Items for committee review include engineering drainage and utility details, staff comments on long-term bike parking, urban-forester planting and screening recommendations, and a staff- or petitioner-led review of outstanding maintenance items on Gramercy West.