HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - Affordable Housing Committee - 03/30/2021South Burlington Affordable Housing Committee
Tuesday March 30th, 2021 at 10:30 AM
AGENDA
IMPORTANT:
This will be a fully electronic meeting, consistent with recently-passed legislation. Presenters and
members of the public are invited to participate either by interactive online meeting or by telephone.
There will be no physical site at which to attend the meeting.
Affordable Housing Committee
Tue, Mar 30, 2021 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM (EDT)
Please join my meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone.
https://www.gotomeet.me/SouthBurlingtonVT/affordable-housing-committee-03-30-2021
You can also dial in using your phone. United States: +1 (646) 749-3122
Access Code: 271-259-797
1.Call to order, agenda review, public comment, approval of minutes,announcements (15m)
2.Communications Update (15m)
3.Discussion and possible action regarding I-89 Exit 12B. Guest speaker TimMcKenzie from South Burlington Business Association. (30m)
4.***Presentation from Alan Long and possible action regarding new housingdevelopment with inclusionary zoning at 1720-30 Spear St (30m)
5.Discussion and possible action regarding Inclusionary Zoning Income andRent/Purchase Price Maximums (30m)
6.Adjourn
43 Great Road
Bedford, MA 01730
February 12, 2021
Paul Conner, Director
Department of Planning and Zoning
City of South Burlington
575 Dorset Street
South Burlington, VT 05403
Dear Mr. Conner,
In conjunction with our sketch plan application to the Development Review Board, I write in
response to the City Council’s requirement for a separate letter detailing the ways in which our
proposed development at 1720/1730 Spear Street complies with the objectives of the Interim
Zoning (IZ) Bylaw enacted in November, 2018 and subsequently extended. The main stated
objective of IZ is to maintain “a balance among our natural open spaces and our developed,
residential and commercial spaces….” Our proposed development addresses both the need to
conserve natural environments and the desire to add housing in the City.
A)How is the proposed project consistent with the health, safety, and welfare of the City
of South Burlington in consideration of the stated purposes of the Interim Bylaws?
We do not believe that our project poses any threat to the health or safety of the City. The
City’s welfare, though, will be enhanced in several ways – tax revenue will increase, housing
stock will expand, permanently conserved acreage will increase, and recreational opportunities
will improve.
The need for additional housing in South Burlington has been made clear by the ad hoc Housing
Space Working Group, whose study “The Case for Housing” was presented to the City Council in
August, 2020, and by the continuing efforts of the IZ Affordable Housing Committee. The
Planning Commission’s work on Planned Unit Developments during Interim Zoning should have
a major impact as well – requiring a range of building types in Traditional Neighborhood
Developments can only help to foster the income, lifestyle, and age-related diversity we all
agree the City needs. We intend to provide five (5) units of affordable housing as part of our
project, across a variety of building types.
On the conservation front, the back (eastern) portion of our property is part of a conserved (via
the 2006 Natural Resource Protection zoning statute) swath of land that extends from the City’s
Underwood property in the north through the eastern portions of the South Pointe
development, our land, and the South Village development in the south. Parts of this swath
comprise the western edge of the Great Swamp, identified in the IZ Open Space Committee’s
study as the #1 priority for conservation in the City. Conserving the Great Swamp and its
adjacent fields and forest blocks is certainly one of the best achievements of the City’s zoning
efforts in the past twenty years, and our family is happy to have been able to contribute to that
conservation.
An environmental assessment we commissioned in the summer of 2020 found a healthy
diversity of flora and fauna in the forested and wetland areas in the eastern portion of our
property, as also assumed in the Arrowwood study of 2019. Conservation of these habitats is
consistent with both the City’s mandates and our own desire to preserve the wild and natural
features of the property that we have cherished for the seventy (70) years of our ownership.
Our plan also preserves a copse of trees at the top of the ridge adjacent to the southeast corner
of the South Pointe development by including it in a conserved strip along South Pointe Drive.
The residents of South Pointe value having this patch of “non-core forest” in their back yards,
and we are happy to conserve it as well as the much larger eastern swath of fields and woods
connecting to the Great Swamp.
Our family has maintained hiking and cross-country skiing trails on our property for decades.
The proposed project will connect walking paths in the new development with trails that access
the fields and woods adjacent to and into the Great Swamp. Those same trails will of course be
available for bird-watchers and wild-animal lovers as well. Easements will be granted to the
City to provide public access through the development to the fields and forests in the eastern
portion of the property.
B)How is the proposed project consistent with studies being conducted, draft bylaws or
bylaw amendments, and/or any draft comprehensive plan or comprehensive plan
amendments under consideration?
As landowners whose development plans could be affected directly by changes to the Land
Development Regulations, we have participated actively in the deliberations of the Planning
Commission over the past year. To the best of our knowledge, our project is consistent with all
of the draft changes to the LDRs currently under consideration.
C)What is the project’s relationship to or effect upon each of the following?
(i)The capacity of existing or planned community facilities, services, or lands
Our proposal is for an infill development between South Pointe and South Village, and we will
connect to existing utility mains for natural gas, water, sewer, and electricity in the most
efficient ways possible.
(ii)The existing patterns and uses of development in the area
The adjacent developments on Spear Street are emblematic of the City’s commitment to
expand its housing stock in a fashion that enhances diversity, inclusivity, and affordability in a
tasteful manner. South Pointe and South Village, with their mixtures of housing types and their
commitment to preservation of open space, stand in contrast to the high-end single-family
homes farther north on Spear Street. It is in that context that development of 1720/1730 Spear
in the manner we’re proposing fits perfectly with the City’s goals – the eastern portion remains
conserved (in fact, the PC intends to preserve even more acreage on our property than was
protected under the 2006 NRP boundaries), and the western portion is consistent with the
adjacent developments in South Pointe and South Village.
(iii)Environmental limitations of the site or area and significant natural resource
areas and sites
The eastern portion of our property consists of core forest and Class 2 wetlands, correctly
identified as significant habitat blocks in the Arrowwood study. There is an additional non-core
forest block at the top of the ridge parallel to Spear Street, adjacent to the South Pointe
development, that we also intend to conserve.
(iv)Municipal plans and other municipal bylaws, ordinances, or regulations in effect
As mentioned previously, the project has been designed to conform to both current and
proposed zoning regulations. All infrastructure and housing will be constructed to City
standards.
In summary, our project provides an excellent example of the balance sought by the Interim
Zoning Bylaw, fulfilling several of the City’s priorities: the desire to conserve large portions of
the Southeast Quadrant for animal habitats, recreational uses, and the diminishing “rural feel”
of the City; the need for additional housing, particularly inclusive housing; and the need to
allow landowners to develop their property in accordance with current zoning and other City
regulations.
I am of course happy to provide any additional information that may be required.
Sincerely,
Alan Long (on behalf of the Long family)
Alanklong56@gmail.com
781-521-5429
43 Great Road
Bedford, MA 01730
February 12, 2021
Marla Keene, Development Review Coordinator
Department of Planning and Zoning
City of South Burlington
575 Dorset Street
South Burlington, VT 05403
Dear Ms. Keene,
Please accept this letter and accompanying documents as our application for approval of the
attached sketch plan for development of our properties at 1720 and 1730 Spear Street. We
have worked with O’Leary Burke Civil Associates and with the Planning and Zoning staff to
arrive at this first stage in the permitting process.
This letter addresses the issues required by the City of South Burlington Land Development
Regulations (Appendix E: Submission Requirements), as follows: A) a narrative description of
the project, B) demonstration of compliance with applicable review standards, C) a list of
submission elements, and D) changes from previous submittals. A completed Zoning Permit
Application with the requisite fee has also been submitted.
A.Project Narrative and Description
We propose a new Traditional Neighborhood Planned Unit Development (PUD) on a 39.2-acre
parcel that combines our existing residential properties at 1720 Spear Street (34.35 acres) and
1730 Spear Street (4.86 acres). The two existing single-family houses, both currently vacant,
will be removed to accommodate the development. New housing is proposed only for the
western (zoned NR, Neighborhood Residential) portion of the combined parcel – the eastern
portion extends into the Great Swamp and has been conserved since 2006 under the City’s
Natural Resource Preservation (NRP) statute. The project will be consistent in look and feel
with the adjacent existing developments, South Pointe to the north and South Village to the
south.
As shown on the attached sketch plan, the new development will comprise forty-nine (49) units
and a mixture of housing types: six (6) single-family homes, twenty-one (21) carriage homes, six
(6) duplex units, and sixteen (16) multi-family units. This mix of typologies is consistent with the
City’s goal of creating diverse neighborhoods and will provide new residents with a range of
sizes and price points. Also, we intend to include five (5) units of affordable housing, which will
help to address the “missing middle” problem stressed by the IZ Affordable Housing Committee
in its recent meetings.
More than half of the combined properties, approximately twenty-two (22) of the 39.2 acres,
are conserved under the current NRP zoning, leaving approximately seventeen (17) acres
available for development. Our plan calculates housing densities based on that NR/NRP
breakdown, and it also conforms to the requirements of the new Land Development
Regulations as currently drafted.
New roadways will consist principally of a curved central road through the center of the
development and a long-anticipated connection between South Pointe and South Village at the
top of the ridge parallel to Spear Street. In addition, a short loop connecting these two new
roads will provide access to the multi-family units on the south edge of the property, and
another loop will connect to the single-family homes on the western edge of the project. The
central road will branch off South Pointe Drive to avoid an additional curb cut onto Spear
Street; in fact, there will be a net loss of two curb cuts onto Spear, since each of the existing
houses has its own driveway at present. All proposed roadways will be constructed with 50-
foot rights-of-way, and the central road will have on-street visitor parking and a sidewalk along
its western/southern edge.
The Long family has always promoted access to its fields and woods – we have maintained
hiking and cross-country skiing trails on the 1720 Spear property for decades. The proposed
development preserves access to these natural assets, maintaining connections to the Great
Swamp and the conserved eastern portions of South Village, South Pointe, and the City’s
Underwood property. The project also creates a strip of parkland along its northern edge,
adjacent to South Pointe, and a central neighborhood park that can be enjoyed by all residents.
A walking path will be provided through the long strip of parkland, and the gap between
carriage homes on the eastern edge of the development will connect that path with the NRP
zones to the east, including the Great Swamp. As was established previously for the adjacent
South Pointe development, we will grant easements to the City to allow pedestrian access
through our development to the forested area on the far eastern end of the property. In
addition, a connection will be provided to a South Village recreation path that parallels the
property boundary near the western end of the proposed multi-family units.
B.Compliance with Applicable Review Standards
The base density formula for the property would allow us to build forty-seven (39.2 X 1.2 = 47)
dwelling units. The maximum density formula allows as many as sixty-nine (17.4 X 4 = 69) units
on the developable acreage, but sixty-nine units would be too crowded for our vision of the
new neighborhood. We intend to include five (5) units of affordable housing (two (2) multi-
family, two (2) duplex, and one (1) carriage home), and we are requesting an allowance for an
additional two (2) units over the base density via an affordable housing bonus, to avoid the
purchase of TDRs. As part of a Mixed Rate Housing Development as defined in Section 18.02
C(2) of the current LDRs, a 14% density bonus could add as many as six (6) units, for a total of
fifty-three (53), i.e. four more units than we plan to build.
Our understanding is that the new LDRs proposed by the Planning Commission will use an
alternative methodology based on “building type,” and we have been advised by Planning and
Zoning that the number of units and the diversity of housing types we are proposing is
consistent with the new standards for TND PUDs.
Mains for water, sewer, electricity, and natural gas already extend along Spear Street and into
both South Pointe and South Village, and our infill development will require only a minimal
expansion of those utilities.
There is an area of wetland in the NRP area on the property that may encroach at the southeast
corner of the proposed development. This wetland area will be certified in the spring of 2021,
and a storm water treatment area will be installed in that corner, just beyond the road
connection to South Village. An additional storm water treatment basin will be installed
adjacent to Spear Street at the northwest corner of the property. This basin and the back yards
of the single-family homes at the southwest corner will provide a buffer between the
development and the traffic on Spear Street. Any wetland areas adjacent to developed land
will be delineated appropriately, e.g. by stylistically appropriate fencing.
C.Submission Elements
a.Complete Subdivision Sketch Plan Application Form
b.Complete Interim Zoning Plan Review Application
c.Cover letter and narrative (this document)
d.List of abutting landowners with addresses
e.Plan set:
i.Existing conditions
ii.Sketch site plan
D.Changes from Previous Submittals
There have been no previous submissions of this proposal.
Please feel free to contact me with any additional questions.
Sincerely,
Alan Long (on behalf of the Long Family)
Alanklong56@gmail.com
(781) 521-5429
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ASSUMED WETLAND DELINEATIONPARCEL ID:0384-00109SMSDC LLCPARCEL ID:1219-00349SMSDC LLCPARCEL ID: 1640-01840SOUTH VILLAGECOMMUNITIES LLCPARCEL ID: 1640-01690NANCY BELISLE LIFE ESTATEPARCEL ID: 1330-00002SKIP FARRELLPARCEL ID: 1640-01725PAUL & JOANNE TRAVERSPARCEL ID: 1640-01741BRENT & JILL COOMBSPARCEL ID: 1640-01751JENNIFER RANDPARCEL ID: 1640-01755DAVID & CATHERINE CONEPARCEL ID: 0570-01455NOWLAND FARM PRESERVE LLCPARCEL ID: 0570-01505DORSET MEADOWSASSOCIATES LLCABCDEFGLMHIJKSOUTH POINTEHOMEOWNERSASSOCIATION, INC.NO1741-00148MICHAEL & BONNIE MCINERNEYABCDEFGHIJK1628-00128MARIA DE CASTRO TRUST1628-00140MARY WARD REVOCABLE TRUST1628-001501628-001561628-001701628-001801628-001891628-001921741-000151741-00028CHRISTOPHER CARPENTER TRUSTJOHN NEUHAUSERHERMAN & HOLLY WIEGMANCHRISTOPHER & HELEN MCCABERODERICK SHEDDKOOROSH & KATARINA KHOSRAVIMARGARET BALDWINVIRGINIA SCHMIDT TRUSTL1383-00039LARRY & LINDA WILLIAMSM1383-00055CHRISTOPHER ACKERMANN1219-00356JOHN GIEBINK TRUSTO1219-00362JOHN GIEBINK TRUSTAbutters KeyPARCEL IDPROPERTY OWNERSOUTH POINTEHOMEOWNERSASSOCIATION, INC.PARCEL ID: 1640-01840SOUTH VILLAGECOMMUNITIES LLCPARCEL ID:4000-00000-007THE FARM AT SOUTHVILLAGE INC.NOTES:1.THE PLANS SHOULD NOT BE USED FOR PROPERTY CONVEYANCE2.THE ORTHO PHOTO WAS TAKEN IN 2018 BY VCGI3.THE EXISTING CONTOURS ARE BASED OFF 2004 LIDAR DATASpear Street
Churchill StN. Jefferson RdSouth Pointe DrUpswept LnPARCEL ID: 1640-01730PARCEL ID: 1640-01720