Athens-Boonesboro development process leaves out whether it makes any sense | Opinion
A proposed zone change and development on Athens-Boonesboro Road is a bellwether for how the Expansion Area Master Plan can fail to serve the needs of the community.
Firstly, the members of the Planning Commission should be commended for volunteering their time and talent for the complex task of reviewing applications and meeting every week to make decisions. This kind of civic mindedness is essential for a participatory and representative form of government to function, and I personally thank them all.
Having said that that, the experience of dealing with a proposed zone change in our area has been extremely frustrating. It appears that the applicant for a project has the upper hand in the process. The details of the process seem to be the focus of decision making without considering whether the project makes sense.
The area is currently zoned for and is prescribed in the EAMP for low-density residential homes. There are hundreds of such homes in the area. There are also significant farm operations.
According to the supplemental staff report on the petition, “the applicant (emphasis added) continues to opine that such a recommendation is no longer appropriate for this area” and wishes to add apartments and commercial operations such as a gas station, food mart and coffee shop. This is all the opinion of the applicant, with no contrasting opinions yet considered. This is where there are eight gas station/food markets within two miles in either direction and six, soon to be seven, places to get coffee. The proposal also includes walkways from these commercial operations into the neighborhoods.
The first request was to change the zoning to ‘Community Center.” That has since been changed to “New Complete Neighborhood Place-Type.” It seems that the zoning of the EAMP does not bind the applicant because it would prevent what he wants to do. He just requests a zoning change using his engineers and attorneys to drive the efforts. The citizens have few resources and little time for responding unless they hire an attorney who can address the details, almost after the fact.
We have been told by counsel that if we get to speak to the Planning Commission we are not to talk about traffic, noise or light pollution. Do not talk about environmental impact or property values. Do not object to walkways that bring transient people into our back yards. We can only address the details of the applicant’s plan and how it does or does not meet the provisions of the EAMP. That means we all must become experts on the EAMP and have access to the plan in time to make this evaluation. This is beyond challenging. It is why we have a planning commission, but it appears that the commission’s charter does not include the key question of “Why? Does this make sense for anyone beyond the applicant?”
At the last Planning Commission meeting there were about 100 neighborhood attendees opposing the plan, but none got to speak. Fortunately, an extension was granted because the latest change to the plans was submitted less than 24 hours before the meeting.
The Planning Commission voted on August 10, after a 4- and one-half hour meeting, to approve the zoning change. Everyone who wanted to address the commission was given the full 3 minutes called for in the procedures. All were opposed but did not carry the day. Beth Musgrave’s report in the Herald-Leader has more details.
Change is inevitable and NIMBY is not a constructive response. More than 500 apartments have been built in the area in an appropriate manner. But dropping a commercial operation into a residential area seems insensitive to the needs of current residents. The letter of the plan, revised to fit the project, may be met, but the spirit is not.
I am reminded of the Latin phrases “Cui bono’ (who benefits) and “Cui prodest (whom does it profit), used for over 2,000 years in investigations and analysis. If something seems wrong, look for who gets the advantage. I am not implying any criminal behavior at all, just venality. Because those who will benefit from this will not be the people who live here, or even the community in general, only those who will make money from the construction and then the operation of the apartments and stores. Does that make sense?
Frank Cannavo is a former US Army officer and retired business executive who after a lifetime of travel and moving has adopted Lexington as his hometown.