Community SCALE Submits Proposal for Neighborhood Rezoning

Community SCALE, a neighborhood development advocacy group, has submitted a proposal to City Council for a “downzoning” of 140 properties in the Fallon Park, Anderson Heights and Bloomsbury neighborhoods from R-6 to R-4 zones. The proposal suggests these lots be rezoned as R-4 residential which means a maximum of four units per acre and would additionally require new houses to sit 5 feet farther from their neighbors and 10 feet farther from the road than the current zoning mandates. R-4 zones may include units such as single-family dwellings, churches, shelter units, home occupations, public schools and libraries but do not include units such as multi-family dwellings, condominiums and group housing; which are allowed under R-6 zoning.

This proposal is in response to the current trend of tearing down older houses and replacing them with large, three-story single family houses that many believe to be encroaching on the existing character of the neighborhood. The goal of Community SCALE’s proposal is to conserve and preserve the nature of the neighborhood.

Below is an excerpt from the proposal:

“To a great extent, except for ‘location,’ the value of a neighborhood is based on the existing character of that neighborhood. Development which threatens or destroys that character decreases livability and concomitant values for existing property owners and, potentially, for the entire city. Redevelopment in Fallon Park/Anderson Heights/Bloomsbury at R-6 or R-10, allowable under the current zoning, might benefit a few landowners, but would come at the expense of many.”

Download the entire proposal here: rezoningdoc.prt.pdf

Opposed to the rezoning is a group called Neighbors that CARE who have begun a zoning protest petition. The group feels that the downzoning would limit homeowners control over their property and would adversely affect property value.

Many residents of the possible rezoning districts have signed their support with one of these groups.

While this rezoning would limit the scale of new construction to be more in line with current houses, would it really encourage more developmental sensitivity towards community preservation, environmental factors and architectural appropriateness? It seems as though while the intentions are good the proposal may be causing residents to declare sides on a tough issue. No matter what happens with the zoning there may be a sense of loss on either side of the debate. The push for preservation of community and character may be splitting the very community that the group is trying to preserve.

Is new zoning the solution that will ultimately protect a community from cultural and environmental loss, or is there a way this issue can be resolved within the neighborhood itself without having to rely on government legislation? What kind of solution might benefit both parties?

The City Council and Planning Commission will begin to consider the rezoning of these properties on September 18.