Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Mixed Use Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commission approves Green Tree Village preliminary plan after lengthy debate; conditions include parking restoration and documented utility easement approval
Summary
Mount Airy planners approved the Green Tree Village preliminary subdivision (61 lots) subject to conditions: five single‑family homes facing Main Street, a waiver of some landscape requirements, documented utility‑easement approvals from BGE and restoration of guest parking spaces removed in a revised plan.
After extended discussion about parking, trails and utility easements, the Mount Airy Planning Commission approved the preliminary subdivision plan for Green Tree Village, an overall 61‑lot development on the corner of North Main Street and Candace Drive. Approval included several conditions addressing landscaping, utility easement documentation and guest parking.
John (town planner) and applicant representatives summarized the submission: the residential portion includes 61 lots (39 townhomes, 16 villa units and five single‑family homes fronting Main Street); the non‑residential lot will be the subject of a later site plan. The plan reflects recent coordination with the local utility company (BGE) that required reconfiguration of trails and removal of a small off‑site parking area that staff and the applicant originally proposed on the utility corridor.
Commissioners raised concerns about the loss of off‑site guest parking (the original concept included informal parking near the utility corridor). The applicant said the parking areas were removed after BGE required revised right‑of‑way conditions; the town planner and applicant said they expected a documented acceptance/approval from BGE describing the permitted grading, gravel trail detail and access within the corridor. Commissioners asked staff to obtain written confirmation from BGE and related utility reviewers before the project proceeds further.
The commission also debated on‑street and guest parking capacity in the development, emergency vehicle access, and the location and usability of pedestrian connections to Summit Ridge Park. Fire and rescue and police services were reviewed as part of the APFO checkpoints and were characterized by staff as adequate for the proposed residential buildout, subject to standard plan requirements (e.g., residential sprinkler systems).
The motion to approve the preliminary plan passed with conditions: the five single‑family homes must match the existing neighborhood and face Main Street; the applicant shall secure documented utility‑easement acceptance/approval (including BGE approvals for the trail/utility corridor) and submit it to planning staff; the town will accept a waiver of specified Mount Airy landscape planting requirements (Section 98‑48) as noted in staff materials; and the applicant was asked to restore guest parking (the motion specified restoring eight guest parking spaces that had been removed when the off‑site parking area was eliminated). The final motion carried with one commissioner recorded in opposition.
