Augusta Heights project a go

By John Boyanoski  

FEBRUARY 11, 2010 10:00 p.m. (0)

More than six months of contentious public outcry, 120 minutes of open debate, 38 minutes of closed debate and 10 minutes of technical questions over a proposed housing development on Augusta Road ended in less than three seconds Thursday as the planning commission voted 4-3 to pass the project.

In play was the commission’s first ruling on a new comprehensive planning code that put more emphasis on public debate of proposed developments inside city limits under the guise of a 37-unit, two-story project located on a bluff overlooking one of Greenville’s main corridors.

Nearby residents and business leaders have been battling the project for months saying its size at more than 40,000 square feet was too big for the neighborhood, it would add too many cars on an already congested roadway that draws comparisons to Woodruff Road at rush hour and  it would be a haven for crime because it would be government subsidized.

However, proponents said the development could be the linchpin of a rebirth in that section of town in terms of new houses and businesses. They contended development was happening citywide, and needed to be allowed here.

Commission members said this was a tough test of the new planning guidelines, and ultimately it will lead to some clarifications to lessen further debate.

With Thursday’s vote, the project is green lighted to start. Ken Blankenship, president of Prestwick Development, which is developing the project, said work could start within 60 days and be finished within eight months.

Blankenship said this was one of the toughest battles he has ever faced in terms of development, but ultimately the questions made the project better. For example, questions from residents and city staff led the project to be scaled back from 48 units to 37 units and from three floors on one side of the L-shaped project to two throughout.

The project is being constructed on the site of the former parsonage house for Augusta Heights Baptist Church.

More than 100 people attended Thursday’s meeting with roughly two-thirds against the project. Nine people spoke against it citing concerns over traffic and size. They also fought the project saying it would cause neighborhood disharmony, which is a consideration when passing a project.

The development team used various studies as well as a video simulation showing the neighborhood that traffic increase from the apartments would be minimal. Close to 21,466 cars use Augusta during the day with a peak of 2,060 during morning hours.

It was estimated that traffic would increase one second per car when stopped. City Traffic Engineer Phil Lindsay said those numbers appeared correct.

The size of the project also was repeatedly called into question. The city comprehensive plan, which zoning director Bryan Wood said is more guide than law, states the property does not allow buildings bigger than 10,000 square feet.

Residents stated the 40,000 square-feet development clearly breaks that ruling. However, Wood said the 10,000-square-foot rule was only for singular-use projects and that the apartments were considered to be 37 separate uses.

Commission chairman Brody Glenn also said the 10,000-square-foot rule was put in the plan to help prevent big-box retailers in residential areas and the panel had not considered an apartment complex.

Members were clearly split as they debated the merits of the project . Glenn, who grew up on Augusta Road, said he could see the pros and cons of the project. In the short term, it was too big for the neighborhood, but in the future it could be considered small, he said.

Member Matt Johnson, who grew up a few blocks from the site, said since traffic didn’t appear to be an issue, he would have to vote for the project. Member Keith Dreher, who also grew up in the neighborhood and walked to nearby Blythe Academy as a child, also said he would vote for the project because it met planning guidelines.

In the end Dreher, Johnson, Glenn and Tripp Muldrow voted for the project, while Mills Gallivan, Mercedes Bartow and Gordon Sherard voted against it.

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