Town council to consider rejecting high-density development plans

The Chapel Hill Town Council might reject plans for a high-density development near Meadowmont and N.C. 54 at its meeting tonight.

The town planning board voted unanimously in September to recommend that the council deny Developer Carol Ann Zinn's request for permission to build the 5.8 acre development Aydan Court.

Town staff also recommend in a memo for the meeting that the council reject the application to keep high-density development close to downtown Chapel Hill.

The planning board and staff cited multiple environmental concerns as reasons for rejecting Aydan Court.

Aydan Court is adjacent to the Jordan Lake watershed. Increased development might lead to greater levels of nitrogen phosphorus and sediment in the lake" according to a memo by planning board member Judy Weseman. The pollutants could create environmentally harmful algae blooms.

Zinn said development of single family homes on the land would prove more damaging to the environment.

""We have irrefutable proof that Aydan Court" that multifamily is better environmentally" Zinn said. She said runoff from Aydan Court would be a trickle.""

Zinn is requesting a type of permit that would allow her to build condominiums and townhouses rather than single-family homes. These buildings have a higher floor space to footprint ratio than normally allowed" Zinn said.

To receive the permit Zinn must prove that Aydan Court is both compatible with the town's Comprehensive Plan which guides local development" and that it fulfills requirements for the special permit.

Town Council member Ed Harrison said the development is not close enough to downtown to get higher density zoning.

""The zone doesn't exist that they're asking for" Harrison said.

Zinn said town staff has not giving the council all the information she had prepared in defense of her project.

She said she has submitted 70 pages of information that was not passed on to the council.

There may be some subterfuge here" Zinn said. I don't know what's going on.

""One of the critical things here is that staff isn't providing complete information.""



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