|
|
previous |
view all |
next
To the Editors:
- THE CUYAHOGA VALLEY SCENIC
ISN’T THE ONLY RAILROAD IN TOWN
|
I thank everyone who provided opinions, in writing, in person, or by phone, concerning the 4- to 2-acre reduction in lot size per dwelling in a portion of the Village. I presented your opinions and the reasoning behind your opinions to the Peninsula Planning Commission. This was an issue that we deliberated long and thoughtfully, consulting not just current popular opinion but also the history of the issue, our Long Range Plan and current Zoning Ordinance protections and shortcomings. In the end, we decided that the current lot requirements don’t require adjusting at this point in time. This is consistent with the majority of the feedback we received. We decided to instead focus our limited time on fixing Ordinance shortcomings and inconsistencies, making sure rules are in place to protect our privacy, property values and resources, keeping in mind that we could always revisit the lot size issue again in the future. After all, while the land is not going away, we cannot create any more of it. The Planning Commission's recommendations and your opinions were presented to your elected officials. Counci's knee-jerk reaction was to ignore all of that and go instead with the wishes of a small and insistent minority; that is, to decrease lot requirements to 2-acres immediately. I attempted to present the Commission’s findings in detail, but the mayor seems disinterested in such things. Council already had their first reading for the decrease and the second reading will occur before you read this. If you've read this far, I highly recommend that you attend the June 9 Public Hearing and Village Council meeting at 6:30 p.m. at the Village Hall. It does seem a shame that this very important meeting was delayed to a week when so many people will be away on vacation.
Now just in case you think there’s a chance that your opinion, no matter what it is, might still matter, get a load of this: ignoring the consensus and input of professionals and Peninsula residents, the hard work of other members of the Planning Commission, the Solicitor and even Council, they decided they’d like to throw out the current Zoning Ordinance that they themselves adopted in 2005. While certainly not perfect, this ordinance has and is being thoroughly reviewed, and steadily improved since its passage. It was referred to as “state of the art” by Kirby Date, AICP, of the Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs, and as “complicated” by Councilman Schneider.
Now, I love my 1995 automobile, but it’s needing more repairs and patches all the time, and I can’t be certain that it will still get me to where I want to go tomorrow. The interesting thing about the 1991 code is that it does contain the 2-acre lot requirement. Other than that, I really don’t know what. The Commission, all of us volunteers by the way, will have a minimum of 30 days to review it and provide our recommendation.
So, please, do come to any of the Village Council’s (usually the second Monday at 7 p.m.) and the Planning Commission’s (usually the first Tuesday at 7 p.m.) meetings. Make your opinion count. I hope to see you there, especially June 9, 6:30 p.m.
|