Council continues review of 77-acre Riverview Villages PUD after wide public opposition on density and traffic

The Newcastle City Council on April 13 heard a lengthy staff and developer presentation on Riverview Villages, a proposed 77.33-acre planned unit development that would create mixed-use village center, multifamily and small-lot single-family housing, and then postponed a final decision to allow the developer to revise the plan.

Planning staff described the proposal as a mixed-use neighborhood with a central town center and a range of housing types. Janae Greenlee, planning staff, said the project would include about 263 lots — roughly 234 village single-family lots, nine multifamily lots and 20 commercial-mixed lots — and requested reduced lot sizes, narrower local streets and other PUD-specific exceptions to the city’s current subdivision standards.

“The proposal seeks to add diverse housing options with boutique commercial uses while keeping commercial intensity off the neighborhood edge,” Greenlee said. She told the council staff recommends careful review of setbacks, parking and utility provisions in the final plat and PUD handbook.

The applicant’s attorney, Sean Reager, framed the plan as a deliberate, design-driven alternative to full commercial development allowed under current CC-2 zoning. “This is not big-box commercial,” Reager said. “It’s a walkable…