Design Review Commission backs modified landscape plate for Meadows at Clarus Ridge

The Collierville Design Review Commission on a unanimous vote recommended approval of a minor planned development amendment for the Meadows at Clarus Ridge subdivision that changes the approved landscape plate along Sycamore Road and East Shelby Drive.

Maria, the town planner, told commissioners that Cruise Development requested an amendment to the Meadows at Clarus Ridge PD pattern book to modify a reverse-frontage landscape plate where a roadside ditch makes planting and maintaining mulch beds and shrubs difficult. The 61.96-acre site is zoned R-1 (low-density residential) and lies at the northeast corner of Sycamore Road and East Shelby Drive within the Clarus Ridge at Cartwright Farms PD.

The amendment would eliminate shrubs and mulch beds in the roadside buffer and replace them with a double row of understory street trees. Steven Williams of Cruise Development, the applicant, said the change responds to erosion and maintenance problems: "it's just gonna push that mulch and wash it out," he told the commission, describing how runoff from an increasingly impervious corridor would degrade planted mulch beds.

Why it matters: the outline plan for Clarus Ridge at Cartwright Farms was recorded in June 2021 and the PD was approved through Resolution 20 19-46; however, the product pattern book was referenced in that resolution and has not been recorded. Because the proposed change affects the reverse-frontage buffer along a major road, the town planner requested the Design Review Commission's recommendation before the town planner issues a final administrative decision and the Board of Mayor and Aldermen (BMA) affirms that decision.

Commissioners and staff focused discussion on specifics the amendment does not yet include: species selection, exact planting spacing along the fence line, and how plantings will interact with overhead Memphis Light, Gas & Water power lines and a planned greenbelt trail. Commissioners said they were comfortable with changing the street trees from canopy trees to understory trees at 40 feet on center but sought clarity on the planting pattern immediately behind the fence where Phase 1 planting had included evergreens and close spacing.

To address those concerns, the commission approved a recommendation with conditions: the motion (as recorded) specifies street-side understory trees at 40 feet on center and calls for the fence-side buffer to be planted as groupings of three understory trees staggered with the street trees (the groups to be 40 feet on center with roughly 15 feet between trees inside a group). The commission and applicant agreed that the detailed planting plan and species list would be submitted with Phase 2 construction drawings for administrative review; staff will return the plans to the DRC if the planting proposal does not meet town standards or if staff requests further review. The motion passed on a roll call vote: Lawhon, Donhart, Robbins, Hepner, Peeler, Larimore and Doss all voted yes.

Cruise Development representatives said they had held a neighborhood meeting in March where residents expressed support for the proposed change and that the company prefers a planting solution that reduces recurring maintenance and the likelihood of washed-out mulch beds. Staff noted the revised plate must still be reflected in a re-recorded outline plan and product pattern book if the BMA affirms the town planner's decision.

What happens next: staff will present the town planner's decision and the DRC recommendation to the Board of Mayor and Aldermen for affirmation at its next meeting (the applicant's packet anticipates BMA consideration on May 27). If Phase 2 construction drawings include landscaping sheets, staff said those sheets could be reviewed concurrently with the administrative staff review; the DRC requested the ability to see species-level planting plans if staff determines that is necessary to ensure the plate's intent is respected.

The commission's recommendation does not change the recorded outline plan to date; staff said any rerecording of the outline plan will need to reflect this amendment plus a previously approved minor amendment related to Sycamore Road improvements.

For context: commissioners cited nearby subdivisions (Hearthstone, Shelby Post Point and Magnolia Preserve) as examples of reverse-frontage buffers that currently include canopy and understory trees plus evergreen shrubs; the proposed plate for Phase 2 reduces shrub/mulch beds in favor of tree groupings because of the roadside ditch and overhead utilities. The applicant and staff said installation and long-term maintenance responsibilities would follow the town's normal construction and dedication process: Cruise Development will construct and dedicate the greenbelt trail to the town (subject to inspections), after which maintenance typically shifts to the town or to a homeowners association as specified in the development agreement.

The Design Review Commission also received administrative development updates at the end of the meeting, including notices about other pending cases in town.