Planning commission approves rezoning for 84-acre Glen Parkway development amid traffic and buffering concerns

The City of Delaware Planning Commission voted July 16 to recommend rezoning about 84.312 acres east of Brahmiller Road from A-1 Agricultural to RPUD (residential planned unit development), clearing the way for a future housing project that city staff said could include single‑family, townhome and potentially multifamily units.

The commission approved the rezoning by voice vote with commissioners Fowler, Cross, Prowl, Nana and Vice Chair Hoffman recorded as voting yes; Commissioner Stroud and Chairman Simpson were absent. Vice Chair Hoffman noted the approval covers only the zoning stage and that “this is just the zoning stage. And now the opportunity to be participatory neighbors and citizens in helping…give input on the project going forward at the development stage.”

Staff told the commission the 84.312‑acre site is in Sub‑Area 1 of the Delaware Together comprehensive plan’s Southeast Focus Area and falls within the Delaware City Schools district. The concept submitted with the rezoning request shows four general subareas and a recommended maximum density of five dwelling units per acre; lot sizes, building design and internal street layout will be decided at the later development‑plan stage. City staff recommended approval with conditions contained in the resolution sent to council.

Applicants said they support staff recommendations but asked the commission not to lock a precise curb‑cut location on Brahmiller Road into the zoning approval. Applicant counsel Ron Sabatino told the commission the engineering department had not yet met with the applicant to resolve a technical traffic issue and asked the commission to allow the engineering staff and developer to finalize access locations at the development stage. “We would ask that the condition be simplified so that we all don't have to come back in front of you when engineering and we agree after they get the traffic study,” Sabatino said.

City engineering staff said the standard process already gives the city engineer final review of the exact design and location of access points at the development plan stage. An engineering representative told the commission that aligning the proposed access with an existing intersection across the road is preferable for safety and could otherwise require off‑site improvements by the county if the alignment were changed.

Residents who live near the site urged commissioners to weigh traffic and safety impacts, buffering and lot sizes. “The intersection of Brahmiller and Berlin Station is not safe,” said Michelle McKinney Harris, who lives on Berlin Station Road, asking the commission to consider how denser housing will affect local traffic and pedestrian safety. Neighbor Brian Mahone asked the developer to consider larger single‑family lots near existing homes and to provide a tall berm and trees as a buffer.

Staff and applicants said the rezoning stage does not finalize site layout, sidewalks or traffic mitigation; those items are resolved at the development plan and engineering review stages. Staff told the commission the city will require public streets inside the development, sidewalks on those streets, required tree lawns and street trees, and that lots abutting existing neighborhoods must match adjacent lot widths under the new zoning code. Staff also said a city‑owned easement to the south of the site will remain and that permissible uses within that easement will be determined by the city engineer.

The commission passed the rezoning recommendation and staff said the case will go to City Council for a public hearing on Aug. 25; staff invited neighbors to submit written comments or testify at the council hearing. The commission and staff repeatedly urged public engagement at the development plan stage where traffic studies, detailed lot layouts, tree preservation plans and any landscape buffers will be reviewed.