The development is one of four projects that the council decided to review despite a Jan. 28 decision that essentially halts all new development until town officials can craft a new ordinance. The new ordinance is expected to go into effect by Sept. 18.
Council members approved an amendment to the existing ordinance that allows developers to make 15 percent of a development's units affordable as opposed to making 25 percent of houses below a certain size.
Carol Ann Zinn, a representative of Cazco Inc., the Larkspur developers, petitioned the council Jan. 14 to consider an affordable housing proposal that included the amendment passed Monday night and also a measure that would allow developers to make payments instead of building affordable housing.
Through the new amendment, Cazco will be allowed to construct 13 or more affordable housing units rather than reduce the size of 25 percent of the housing units in the Larkspur development.
Larkspur is a 39.5-acre development that will be located northwest of Weaver Dairy Road and will include 85 lot cluster units, 12 acres of open space and pedestrian trails.
After the council decided to exclude the payment-in-lieu option from the original amendment, it passed unanimously.
Council members then debated key terms of the proposed Larkspur Subdivision development.
About 18 residents from the Northwood Subdivision, which is located adjacent to the proposed site, attended the meeting to express their concern regarding the potential negative impact of additional traffic along Hunter Hill Road.
Chapel Hill Planning Board member Bob Rita agreed with the residents and offered an alternative. "I think in this case, forcing the merger of these two neighborhoods does not makes sense," Rita said. "I would ask you to please have pedestrian, bicycle access into Northwood neighborhood." The council decided to replace the option of full vehicular access with a 12-foot wide path to accommodate pedestrians, bikes and emergency vehicles.
