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Aldermen take first steps on large Blackberry Hills PUD amendment and approve removal of 10-acre parcel
Summary
The board heard a first reading of a proposed amendment to the Blackberry Hills planned unit development covering about 193 acres and approved removing a separate 10-acre parcel from the PUD after staff raised missing covenants and the applicant pledged a clearer governing document.
Oxford planning staff presented a multi-area amendment to the Blackberry Hills planned unit development and the board also approved a separate rezoning and removal of 10 acres from the PUD at the Aug. 19 meeting.
The PUD amendment presented by staff would re-establish a development vision across roughly 193 acres west of Rowandale and break the project into five areas covering a mix of traditional neighborhood business frontage, suburban multifamily, neighborhood residential, open space and public road infrastructure. Staff said areas 2, 3 and 5 are scheduled to commence construction in 2025 pending site-plan and subdivision approvals, area 1 in 2026, and that overall buildout is anticipated by 2035.
Planning staff told the board the original Blackberry Hills PUD documentation lacks clear overarching covenants and a cohesive development vision, which has made it difficult for potential developers to move forward. Ben, a city planner, explained the missing elements and said stronger PUD documentation would be required going forward. Applicant counsel George Hamans said removing smaller parcels from the PUD in some cases "gets us out of the way" and allows a single owner to prepare a transparent governing PUD document.
The board unanimously voted to approve the separate rezoning of a 10-acre parcel from suburban residential to neighborhood residential and to remove that parcel from the Blackberry Hills PUD; a motion to bypass the third reading and vote this evening was made and seconded. Several related items — including the larger 193-acre PUD amendment by Andy Calicut — were taken as first readings and will return for second readings and public hearings.
Why this matters: The PUD amendment would set detailed standards for uses, lot coverage, design, circulation, stormwater and open space for a significant swath of land near existing Rowandale development. Planning staff said updated covenants and clearer PUD language should reduce uncertainty for developers and neighbors.
Next steps: Items taken as first readings will return to the board for required subsequent readings and public hearings; staff and applicants will continue work on the governing PUD documents and related site-plan and subdivision approvals.
