City Moves Ahead on Parkway Annexation Request; Oks Comprehensive Plan
Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer
Anderson City Council on Monday unanimously approved sending a request from a land developer for the annexation of 22 acres on the East-West Parkway just southwest of Kings Road to the City Planning Commission.
New details, not listed in the agenda packet, were revealed at the meeting suggesting that the proposal for eight acres of the property is slated for senior multi-family development. No details of proposals were announced for the remaining 14 acres, which is not unusual.
Anderson City Councilman Kyle Newton, whose Seat 1 district is home to the East-West Parkway, said the presentation to council to send such a request to planning is “largely ceremonial.”
“There’s not a ton of information on the front end (of such proposals) before it comes to council,” said Newton.
Newton, who voted to send the proposal forward, also said he would prefer more details on not just this project but others as well up front.
“One thing I always try to do is to make sure I’m looking at the final version of plans and detailed plans before I make a final decision,” said Newton. “I know that is something expected of me representing Seat 1 and the city, whether it’s this project or any other project, I want to make sure that I have all the facts, all the pertinent relevant information.”
Newton said the planning and development division will do the legwork and “get the details ironed out” of the new annexation proposal before sending it back to council. Review of the proposal by planning has been moved to the April 15 meeting.
“That’s when council really drills down on any project to see if it needs a change or even needs to happen,” said Newton.
But Newton also expressed concerns about development along the East-West Parkway, saying that to date he has not seen anything presented which he would desire for that area.
He also recognized the essential quality of life challenges facing growing communities.
“Quality of life requires green space and recreation for any communities looking to thrive, and that is something we have to protect,” said Newton. “There are a lot of things you can go back and fix, but that’s not one of them. Any time you make a decision that takes away any kind of green space or trail space or anything like that there’s not going back on those kinds of decisions. That’s why foresight and planning are so important; those are things that need protection.”
“It’s all a balancing act…and we want to make sure we are a leader in that quality of life.”
Newton said that any decision made about development along the East-West Parkway is likely to “set the tone” for other development and growth along the road, especially the Concord Road intersection.
He also noted that since he had been on council, he cannot remember rejecting a formal request for annexation.
“To my knowledge we haven’t shot any formal request of annexation down as far as I know.”
The city’s recent Comprehensive Plan (not currently available online), was officially approved by council on Monday, and will be used to guide future development, including proposed uses of development of properties along the parkway, which officially opened Nov. 8, 2013.
The potential for development comes as Anderson County Council working new development standards based partly on concerns of unbridled annexation and mass development, which has created issues in annexed areas such as Midway Road where water and grading questions continue.
“It’s kind of a Catch-22 for us while we’re trying to tighten things up and make it a better product, where we handle storm water, try not to clear cut property, avoid high density and to deal with all that,” said Anderson County Councilman Chris Sullivan, who serves County Council Dist. 1 where the annexation is proposed, attended Monday’s city council meeting. “If it (property) borders the city, where they don’t have the same regulations, developers can get a whole different group of standards which is often better deal for them, with fewer requirements. So, while we’re trying to do what's best for Anderson County, the city doesn’t have to adhere to any of our policies.”
Sullivan, who describes his working relationship with city leaders as good, plans to meet with Newton and others to build stronger relationships between the city and county.
“I would like more regular meetings between city and county where we can sit down and honestly work together to make Anderson a better place,” said Sullivan.
But Sullivan holds out little hope the county will have much influence on the city’s decisions to annex land on the parkway.
“They hired a pretty big-time consultant and have invested a lot of time and energy to come up with a plan of what they want to annex in and which direction they want to go, and I don’t get the feeling the county is going to have any input on that,” said Sullivan. “I get the feeling with their comprehensive plan they have a visual idea of what they want the City of Anderson to look like, and I hate to say we’re not a part of that, but I feel like they know what they want.”
