We Requested a Site Plan Revision, But Came Away With a Rezoning

Not Just a Rezoning, But a Down-Zoning!

The owners of the Marshall Square site are extremely disappointed with the decision by the Columbia County Board of Commissioners. The four voting Commissioners ignored the fact that the Planning Commission unanimously approved the site plan revision, with a recommendation to remove one residential building with 50 units. The owners and developers very clearly communicated to members of the Board of Commissioners, Planning Board, and Planning Staff during numerous meetings over the past several months that 350 units were required to make the residential project economically feasible. The developer even agreed to change 6 first-floor units in each of the two buildings (12 units total) adjacent to the public square for retail use, for a total of 338 residential units. It was our hope that the Commissioners would appreciate the economics of the matter and grant approval. Instead, they completely rezoned the property from its Planned Unit Development (PUD) zoning in one vote.

During the presentations before the vote by the Commissioners, a document was submitted to the Commissioners for review, along with the claim that there was a limit of 150 apartment units on the site. This figure did not come from any documents regarding zoning or density. The permitted density was always up to 34 units per acre on all acres south of the Ronald Reagan Drive extension. The figure of 150 units came from a letter sent from the owners to the Commission Chairman asking for assistance in extending Ronald Reagan Drive, acknowledging the requirement to build a storm water retention pond, and completing the development of Evans Town Center Boulevard. The letter included an illustration to show how the development of the site would increase the county tax revenues, and included a hypothetical scenario demonstrating the tax revenue from 150 units, along with other development, and in no way suggested a new density limit or rezoning. Incidentally, that request for assistance was denied. The 2004 zoning narrative is the still the only operative document, and it clearly states that apartments and condominiums are approved and at a density of 34 units per acre.

Click here to view the zoning narrative. The residential density is included near the top of the second page.

Another important fact is that this density came from the County's Planning Staff, and it was approved by the Commissioners in July 2004. The County Attorney even stated before the Planning Commission vote on April 16th, that in a PUD, the 14 units per acre limit on apartments was not operative, and the Planning Board approved 5-0 a higher density, though still not at the level of economic feasibility. While some details in the layout of the site plan have indeed changed, this zoning narrative has been in effect the entire time – at least until the County Commission vote last week. Many of those expressing opposition to the apartments claim that the Marshall family has changed the plan many times, which is not true. However, a large number of changes were, in fact, directed by the County.

No other specifics regarding density have ever been submitted or approved by the County, including in the 2007 site plan. During meetings with the Planning Staff in January to request site plan changes, the Planning Staff never questioned the 34 units per acre density. Instead, they concluded that it was merely a change in the character of the residential units, because the apartments were consolidated into residential buildings rather than over the retail shops. The Planning Board had the same response. Having these assurances, the owners and developer agreed to all 16 conditions levied by the Planning Board and Planning Staff to seek the Commissioners’ approval, with the full knowledge on all sides that this was for a 350 unit project. The owners believed the County leadership would honor the approved density, and spent millions of dollars on development costs to move ahead with plans for the residential developer, Miller-Valentine, to begin construction. Neither the owners nor the developer would have agreed to all of those conditions or spent that much money to develop the site if there had been any indication that the Commissioners would limit the density to 14 unit per acre. PUD zoning allows flexibility for higher density than other types of zoning. The County Commissioners ignored the recommendations of their Planning Board and Planning Staff, and in effect, completely threw out the PUD zoning by adding the restriction for normal Apartment Residential (AR) density. The developer was actually seeking a unit count equating to a density of 27 units per acre, rather than the previously approved 34, for 13 acres located to the south of Ronald Reagan Drive extension. Additionally, when dividing the 338 residential units by the total acreage of the Marshall Square site, the result is actually a density of less than 6 units per acre. The remainder of the 2009 site revision clearly shows that the rest of the Marshall Square site would be for retail and office uses.

It appears as though some of the Commissioners may not know zoning law well enough to make an informed decision. A specific site plan revision was presented for approval, and they did not actually ever vote for or against that plan. Instead, they approved to a portion of the plan, then added a new and conflicting zoning (AR) on another portion. PUD zoning requires an approved and specific site plan in order to begin development. As of May 5th, there is no specific site plan for Marshall Square with a residential density of 14 units per acre. Also, all of the conditions added by the Planning Staff and Planning Board were based on a 338 unit residential development. There was no agreement to build a public square or other County directed site amenities for 182 units. Residential apartment developers don’t usually work on projects with a small number such as 182 units, unless it's for a very low quality development, such as a Section 8 project. The developer simply could not spread the cost of recreational amenities and high-end construction across that small number of units. Rezoning the site has not only killed the residential project, but it considerably reduced the value of the entire property.

Whether or not you like the idea of apartments on Marshall Square, please consider the way this issue was handled by a few members of the Board of Commissioners. They added a drastic and financially damaging change to the site zoning in a motion immediately before they voted, despite months of previous discussions with the site owners and developer. Also, the four Commissioners who voted on the revision and the County Attorney met before the 6:00 PM meeting on May 5th to plan the wording for the motion to change the zoning and determine their votes for the site plan revision, rather than hold those discussions during the open session with debate as is normally done. If you own property, and especially if you are a business owner with dreams of future expansion, you should expect more support from County leaders when trying to build something positive for the entire county, especially in these tough economic times. The secret discussions and last minute change by a few of the Commissioners demonstrate that this is not how they currently operate. Their actions have certainly inflicted financial harm on the Marshall family and Miller-Valentine. They have also sent a negative message to other businesses and companies who may have been considering investment in Evans Town Center.