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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLetter to applicantL� City of Little Rock Office of the City Hall City Manager 500 W. Markham Little Rock, Arkansas 72201 (501) 371-4510 FAX # (501) 371-4498 February 26, 1999 Nancy Ledbetter Hillcrest Residents Association 324 Charles Street Little Rock, Arkansas 72205 Dear Mrs. Ledbetter, Thank you for your interest in the Land Use Plan amendment, LU99-04-01, at the intersection of University and "C" streets. The Land Use Plan Amendment and the Rezoning of any property is two separate items that both require a hearing by the Planning Commission and a subsequent hearing by the City of Little Rock Board of Directors. Not every rezoning case requires a Land Use Plan amendment. A Land Use Plan amendment is required if the proposed zoning is in conflict with the Land Use Plan. An example of a zoning request that would trigger a land use plan amendment is if a person wanted to rezone to 1-3 Industrial in an area shown as Single Family. This would obviously be against the plan. In the case in question, LU99-04-01, the original request was to change from Multi -Family to Commercial. Staff reviewed a larger area of the neighborhood and recommended that the applicant change the application to Mixed Use to coordinate with five other expanded areas that the staff felt should be changed. The original application area was also expanded. Multi -Family accommodates residential development of ten to thirty-six dwellings per acre. Mixed Use provides for a mixture of residential, office and commercial uses to occur. A Planned Zoning district is required if the use is entirely office or commercial or if the use is a mixture of the three. Letters were sent to five neighborhood associations, thirteen property owners of the expanded area and the applicant on January 5, 1999 as part of our notification process. Signs were posted on the property and verified by staff. Staff received comment from 7 area residents/business owners. One was in support and six were neutral. No comments were received from neighborhood associations at the time of the planning commission meeting. The only item discussed at the Planning Commission hearing was one of the expanded areas since there was no other opposition. Land Use changes are meant to be general in nature, as illustrated by the fact that land use categories do not follow property lines. Zoning changes, and more specifically Planned Zoning districts (PZD's), are more precise in nature and are reviewed more in depth. Rezoning requests are handled separately from Land Use Amendments and are not guaranteed passage by the Board of Directors simply because the Land Use Plan was approved. Each case is judged on its' own merits. Thank you for your interest and if there are any further questions please call. Sincerely, Cy Cara City Manager