Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning Housing Density topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Eau Claire residents urge limits on 3- and 4-unit housing in proposed zoning rewrite
Summary
Three residents used the councils public comment period to urge the council to limit placement of 3- and 4-unit buildings and to preserve neighborhood plans amid a proposed citywide zoning reclassification.
At the Monday, April 7 public comment period of the Eau Claire City Council, residents urged the council to restrict where 3- and 4-unit buildings can be placed under a proposed zoning rewrite.
Helene Smire, a Stuart Bridal Park neighborhood resident and chair of the neighborhood revitalization corporations housing committee, said the citys proposal to convert existing R-2 zones to an "NR" (neighborhood residential) designation would allow three- and four-unit buildings "anywhere in the neighborhood." Smire told the council she supports increased housing density in the center of a Venn diagram where both neighbors and planners agree, but urged changing the proposed NR designation to "GR" (general residential), which, she said, would limit placement of three- and four-unit buildings to collector roads. "We believe this better aligns with the city comprehensive plan's stated goals to improve the existing surrounding downtown neighborhoods," Smire said, adding that the plans target owner-occupancy rate of 40 to 45 percent contrasts with what she called the neighborhoods current 12 percent owner-occupancy rate.
Deb Lewis, a Randall Park resident and former partnership coordinator at Lakeshore Elementary, asked the council to "please think before you make the decision about the 3 and 4 plexes," saying neighborhood schools and family housing were reasons to consider limiting where higher-density residential conversions occur.
Bob Tolleson, who lives in the Randall Park area and said he worked at Mayo for 35 years, raised parking and congestion concerns tied to increased density, noting overflow parking and driveways blocked by cars in his neighborhood. "We see a number of commuters parking in our neighborhood, a number of occupants who can't find parking so that oftentimes my driveway in winter is blocked by vehicles," Tolleson said.
Speakers emphasized use of existing RM zones for larger multiunit buildings and appealed to the council to retain neighborhood-plan protections. Smire said she would follow up with a letter to the council and return to speak at the next meeting in two weeks.
The public comment period lasted 20 minutes and the comments recorded at this meeting were appeals from residents; no formal zoning action or vote occurred during the meeting.
