Commerce planners give thumbs down for new Whitehill project

The Commerce City Council will have final say over the project and is slated to discuss the matter at its May meetings.

Maggie Taylor, a civil engineer for the project, requested a rezoning of around 90 acres from R-1 to R-2 at Whitehill School Road and Hwy. 441. Taylor also requested three variances: One would waive the requirement that 2 trees be planted to replace every existing tree that is 6-feet in diameter and that is removed for development; another would waive the requirement to submit a survey of existing trees that would be modified/removed; and the last would reduce the required width for the collector/minor street from 36-feet to 24-feet.

The property was previously approved for 55 housing units, but when developers learned of the city’s future wastewater availability (the city is in the process of building a second wastewater treatment plant), the owner decided to redesign the project. What’s being proposed now is a development with up to 126 single-family lots.

City staff recommended approval of the project, noting that the city’s inventory of affordable single-family residential is limited. The project would also help alleviate some stormwater issues in the area given the location of its stormwater ponds.

Staff also noted there wouldn’t be an adverse effect on utilities, including the school system, but Commerce School System Superintendent Joy Tolbert disagreed with that statement.

“I do see negative effects on the school system,” she told the commission.

Tolbert pointed out that local taxes generated on smaller residences don’t come near to covering the cost to the school system for educating a child (or multiple children). That puts more of a burden on the other taxpayers to make up the difference.

(Taylor later noted that developers are planning to construct homes that are approximately 2,300 sq. ft.)

Tolbert was among approximately 20 people who showed up in opposition to the project.

Several people also questioned how the project would benefit the current residents of Jackson County.

Tommy Benton pointed out there’s “no such thing” as affordable housing in Jackson County right now, one of the fastest-growing counties in the country.

A number of Whitehill-area residents also discussed a nightmare traffic situation when traveling down Whitehill School Road to Hwy. 441, some noting they’ve sat in traffic 15 vehicles back at that intersection.

Others pointed to existing problems with water pressure on the south side of town, questioning whether the added housing would worsen the problem.

During discussion amongst the planning commission, chairman Joe Leffew noted he disagreed with the staff recommendation for R-2. He said the property was annexed in for an R-1 development and that R-1 is the standard for residential development in the city.

The vote to deny all the applications was unanimous, with Erin Moore absent and Melinda Cochran-Davis recusing herself from the meeting prior to the public hearings.