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Show Small-lot homes Come under criticism By GARY R. BLODGETT News Editor CENTER VILLE--The Willow Farms Subdivision, Plat One, came under fire by the Centerville City Council again last Tuesday night. THE COUNCIL decided to take the matter under advisement to obtain more information about what can be developed under Re-sidential-2 zoning -- and under "conditional use" of R-2 zoning as petitioned by the developer. Several residents who live adjacent adja-cent to the proposed subdivision attended the council meeting to oppose the "small lot" development develop-ment being constructed adjacent to existing homes that contain a minimum mini-mum of 2,000 square feet on the main floor. EARLIER, developers of the subdivision presented plans to the city council for construction of twin-homes, which are permitted in the existing R-2 zone. After getting opposition from the council with their bid for twin-homes, twin-homes, developers have petitioned the Planning and Zoning Commission Commis-sion and City Council for a "conditional "condi-tional use permit" to build single-family single-family homes. However, the homes proposed for construction are from plans ranging from about 875 square feet to just over 1,000 square feet, and would be constructed on smaller-than-normal lots. THIS BROUGHT opposition from a group of neighbors who told the council that their existing homes are large, expensive homes - over 2,000 square feet on the main floor with basements and garages. gar-ages. THE PROPOSED homes in a planned subdivision west on Jennings Jen-nings Lane would not have garages or basements. Opponents of the development pointed out to the council that the proposed homes would be only about ab-out the size of the Council Chambers Cham-bers in which they are sitting. "WHERE COULD you possibly Continued on page 2 :?itiS r-Cm'- ' t ' PHOTOGRAPHY'Gary Blodgett SPRING CLEANUP CAN be tiring for everyone - and in this case, even for Bountif ul's large garbage cans which seem to be "resting" along 1000 North. Small lots come under criticism Continued from page 1 put storage, especially without T garage," asked one neighbor. "We realize that smaller homes are needed for young families, but we can also visualize toys and other belongings being scattered about the yard because of lack of storage space." Another resident questioned that the small homes would necessitate neces-sitate young families to seek larger homes as their families grow, thus turning the subdivision into an area of transients. STILL ANOTHER resident noted that most of the homes would be sold to younger families with minimum incomes, because they can not qualify for larger homes. "These families, for the most part, will be strapped for money and will not be able to afford repairs re-pairs and necessary maintenacne of their homes, thus the homes will deteriorate," said another. ONE SPOKESMAN for the group told the council that the high water table in the area prevents building of basements. He also asked the council who was going to care for the large swale on the property - the developer, the city, or the homeowners? Councilman Jerry Jenson said the council relies on the city engineer en-gineer and staff to determine what property is suitable for development. develop-ment. "And their recommendation is that this site - despite the high water table -- is suitable for development," de-velopment," he said. THERE IS NO minimum size of a home being built in a small-lot subdivision, sub-division, but the home plans must be approved by the council, it was explained. |