Neighbors and developer clash over proposed sale of Haugen Drive lots for housing

During the public-comment period at the Petersburg Borough Assembly’s July 21 regular meeting, multiple residents spoke about a proposed borough sale of two lots on Haugen Drive. The comments presented sharply contrasting views between neighboring residents and a local developer who wants to build rental housing.

Diane Marsh, who said she owns a home at 804 Joa Street and that she and her late husband built the home in 1980, told the assembly: “I am against selling the property behind me on Haugen.” Marsh said the lot provided wildlife habitat and a visual buffer for her bedroom; she said she had been told when she bought the house that the area would not be developed and that nearby construction of a new hospital has already increased impacts to her property.

Developer Dave Ulmer, who said he was speaking for himself and asked the assembly to let him negotiate with the borough to purchase the Haugen properties, described local housing needs and offered terms he said would speed development. “I’m asking that you would approve my negotiating with the city to be able to purchase these properties for housing development,” Ulmer said. He said a borough housing study estimated the borough would need about 300 new housing units over the next decade and described fast rental-market demand for his recently completed duplexes.

Other nearby residents including Mary Clemens and Miriam Swanson voiced opposition to selling or developing the specific Haugen lots, saying the parcel adds a buffer for an already-impacted house adjacent to the new hospital and that the timing and location are not appropriate for more infill development.

Why it matters: The comments illustrate a common municipal tension between efforts to increase housing stock and neighborhood concerns about privacy, wildlife habitat and cumulative impacts from nearby construction. The assembly received testimony but did not take a final assembly vote on these particular Haugen Drive lots at this meeting.

What was requested and next steps: Ulmer asked the assembly to permit him to negotiate purchase terms; Marsh and others asked the borough not to sell the property. The assembly did not record a final disposition of the Haugen Drive parcel(s) during the July 21 meeting; any subsequent staff negotiation or formal sale would be scheduled and noticed according to borough code.