Sustainable Development Meeting Date
The Sustainable Development Action Plan public meeting is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. March 4 at the Deborah Beggs Moncrief Garden Center, 3220 Botanic Garden Blvd.
The date was misprinted in the Feb. 25 edition of City Page, a City of Fort Worth publication that appears in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
For more information about the public meeting or the city’s sustainability efforts, visit www.fortworthgov.org/sustainability.
Article: Dealing with Development Pressure: Preservation Strategies for Desirable Neighborhoods
By Elizabeth Sappenfield
From North Carolina Preservaion (Fall 2008)
The real estate boom of the 2000s left its mark on many historic neighborhoods. But there are preservation tools available to protect these neighborhoods against increasing development pressures.
In many of our cities, former streetcar suburbs are now highly desirable urban neighborhoods. They are sought after for their convenient locations, mature trees and landscaping, access to amenities and their comfortable community feel. There are many reasons for their popularity beyond their historic houses. While many people love the details of older homes (the hardwood floors, detailed moldings, unusual windows, etc.), others can’t see past the small closets, creaky floors and divided floor plans. The desirability of these neighborhoods and the overall rise in the real estate market have led to rising property values that can become a double-edged sword.
As values have appreciated through the decades, older residents have seen their property values triple, quadruple or more. The accumulated equity can be a blessing, but the corresponding higher tax assessments can be a burden for residents who want to stay in their homes. The trouble really begins when residents look at their assessment, and the land value exceeds the house value. This is the tipping point after which it becomes financially feasible to buy a parcel, demolish a house and rebuild.
Generally known as the “rule of three,” the financial model behind teardowns works when a builder can sell a new home for three times what he paid for the lot (old house included). It is a combination of the real estate market and the city’s regulatory environment that enables this model. The builder has to be able to build a house that is large and fancy enough to sell for triple the price, and someone has to be willing to buy it.
It can be hard for preservation advocates to argue against market forces that bring a rising tide that supposedly floats all boats. Yet they see all too clearly the tidal wave of large new houses that is swamping the more modest homes in their neighborhood. The successful advocate will get city officials, residents, and (some) builders to understand that a neighborhood is more than just a collection of individual houses. The character of the neighborhood, defined by its houses, landscapes, parks and streets, is the context, the webbing that connects individual houses and their residents to each other and the city.
As the old real estate maxim says, value is all about location, location, location.
To read the full article, visit: http://www.presnc.org/index.php/Features/Dealing-with-Development-Pressure.html
More on Conservation Districts
The Fort Worth City Council is considering a new option to help neighborhoods deal with infill single-family housing that is dramatically out of scale with its surroundings.
The city’s Planning and Development Department presented its proposal for conservation districts to the Council last week. Conservation districts offer protection to older neighborhoods that are not protected by historical designation. These districts provide a middle ground between historical designations and basic zoning regulations.
Historic districts control such elements as a structure’s height, setback, architecture and building materials. Residents seeking to make exterior home improvements are subject to the city’s Historic and Cultural Landmarks Commission approval and may receive tax incentives. Historic district designation can prevent demolition of the structure.
The proposed conservation districts would control elements such as height, setback, lot coverage, lot size and driveways, but not architecture and materials. Additional optional elements controlled by a conservation district can include:
- Building orientation
- General site planning
- Signage
- Garages
- Landscaping
- Fences and walls
- Entrance lighting
- Curbs and sidewalks
- Principle elevation features
- Roof line and pitch.
Homeowners seeking to make exterior improvements would be subject to city staff review only, but there would be no tax incentives.
A conservation district could be initiated by a petition process, the City Council, or the Urban Design Commission with opportunities for input from the property owners.
Variances to conservation district standards would be heard by the Board of Adjustment. Property owners in a conservation district would not be prohibited from demolishing a structure and building on that site, as long as the new structure meets objective design criteria set forth for their specific conservation district.
Under city staff’s plan, a conservation district must:
- Encompass at least one block face, but preferably an entire block.
- Contain at least 75 percent of the lots that were improved 40 years ago and are still improved. Forty years is roughly the timeframe when properties start to be demolished and rebuilt.
- Possess distinctive features that create a cohesive, identifiable setting or character, such as spatial relationships between buildings, lot layouts or streetscape characteristics.
The City Council is expected to conduct a public hearing and take final action on the proposed conservation district ordinance in April. In the meantime, several city commissions – Urban Design Commission, Historic and Cultural Landmarks Commission, Zoning Commission, Central City Redevelopment Committee and Development Advisory Committee – will hear briefings and provide comments.
Transportation Public Meetings March 4 & 5
The Regional Transportation Council of the North Central Texas Council of Governments invites the public to learn what is happening with transportation in the region and help set priorities for the future.
Public Meeting Information:
Wednesday, March 4, 2 p.m.
Farmers Branch Recreation Center (Pecan Room)
14050 Heartside Place
Farmers Branch, Texas 75234
Wednesday, March 4, 6:30 p.m.
Denton North Branch Library
3020 N. Locust Street
Denton, Texas 76209
Thursday, March 5, 6:30 p.m.
Fort Worth Intermodal Transportation Center
1001 Jones Street
Fort Worth, Texas 76102
Topics Include:
1) Long-Term Planning: Mobility 2030 (2009 Amendment) Final Recommendations
2) Short-Term Planning: Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) Modifications
3) Air Quality Conformity
4) Unified Planning Work Program Modifications & Development
5) Pay-as-you-Drive Insurance Pilot Program
6) Transportation Authority Program of Projects (POP)
a. Fort Worth Transportation Authority (The T) POP – Fort Worth meeting only
b. Denton County Transportation Authority (DCTA) POP – Denton meeting only
For additional information about public meetings, visit: www.nctcog.org/trans/outreach/meetings
For special accommodations due to a disability or for language translation, please contact Jahnae Stout at 817-608-2335 or jstout@nctcog.org at least 72 hours prior to the meeting. Reasonable accommodations will be made.
Article: Neighborhood watches are on the front lines in bad economy
CNN recently featured an article on neighborhood watch programs. According to the article, “With the economic downturn, neighborhood watch groups are proving to be a first line of defense in battling property crimes.” Here’s a link to the article:
CNN.COM Neighborhood Watch Article
Petition re: Re: Zoning Case [ZC-08-016] passed by the Zoning Commission on February 11th, 2009
Petition offered by resident Charlie Murphy. If you are in support of this information, please print, sign and mail the petition to our Mayor and Councilman Carter Burdette.
Mayor and City Council Members
Re: Zoning Case [ZC-08-016] passed by the Zoning Commission on February 11th, 2009
I am completely opposed to the text amendments to our zoning and land use codes being proposed by city staff in the above referenced zoning case which should correctly be titled ZC-09-016. I am adamantly opposed to having ANY gas compressors, related equipment and gas wells in residential neighborhoods and/or neighborhood commercial areas. Make no mistake, I will vote for my elected officials based upon this council’s vote.
We were not even shown the common courtesy of the minimum notification we were afforded for carports, fences and outside storage barns in our neighborhoods. Instead we are told that the minimum “legal” notification was made, which is an affront to my intelligence. You went to great lengths to have extensive city wide neighborhood meetings concerning garbage carts, large animals & driveway parking, then something like this appalling proposal to stifle residential and commercial growth in our neighborhoods is slipped under the door. Industrial uses belong in industrially zoned areas, as defined in the gas drilling ordinance, for a reason. Let’s not forget that fact.
With the single exception of the definitions of natural gas “lift” and “line” compressors (which is completely inaccurate and incomplete), these changes are NOT duplicated from the recently completed gas drilling ordinance, on which the ink is barely dry, as was stated by city legal staff on February 4th during the Board of Adjustment hearing of BAC-09-018. am completely aware that this is no ordinary “text amendment” to the zoning ordinances, or just simple “house cleaning”. It “IS” in reality a back-door approach that will change our protective zoning ordinances in ways to placate the gas drilling industry and will serve only to degrade my property value and my family’s safety. These “text amendments” will bring unwanted industrial uses to my residential neighborhood and neighborhood commercial that I do not want that under any circumstances whether it is gas compressors, a pork rendering plant or a fireworks manufacturing facility.
I urge you to deny these zoning amendments with prejudice in their entirety and ask that you initiate a complete investigation into how and why these changes were brought forward without complete and proper citizen involvement in the process. If the gas drilling ordinance is deficient in these areas let’s go back and debate the drilling ordinance, but encourage you to leave our neighborhood protective land use tools intact.
Respectfully,
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Barnett Shale Expo, March 11
For those of you who are interested, Devon, EnCana and XTO Energy are presenting The Barnett Shale Expo on March 11 at the Fort Worth Convention Center. The Expo will take place from 1-6pm with breakout sessions occurring from 1:30 until 5:30pm. For more information, visit www.BarnettShaleExpo.com
Neighborhood Crime Watch Presentation
Here is the link to the Neighborhood Crime Watch Presentation featured at our February General Membership meeting.
Neighborhood Watch Training Presentation
Survey: What Are Your Top Neighborhood Issues?
In January, residents were invited to participate in a round table discussion. The objective of this forum was to identify issues impacting residents. AHNA will use these concepts to evaluate our service to the neighborhood as well as formulate future programs for 2009.
The following 10 issues were identified as top neighborhood concerns by residents who attended the January 16 general membership meeting. To get a broader response, we have decided to post these issues on our web site to get feedback from Arlington Heights residents in determining what issues are the most important. Please take a few moments to identify your top 5 neighborhood issues. There is no order of importance, and you are welcome to insert any additional issues you feel should be considered.
The March newsletter will summarize the results of this “round table” discussion / survey.
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Block Captain Roster (Sample)
Here is a sample Roster for use by all Block Captains as you get your phone tree up and running. Good luck!!
Here’s the link to the PDF: Block Captain Roster
