Lawrence Association of Neighborhoods

P.O. Box 1553, Lawrence, KS 66044

March 13, 2005

 

John Haase, Chairman

Members

Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission City Hall

Lawrence, KS 66044

 

RE: Cooperation Agreement between the City of Lawrence, Kansas, and the University of Kansas

Dear Chairman Haase and Commissioners,

 

The Lawrence Association of Neighborhoods is pleased that the City and the University of Kansas have addressed some of the concerns we raised regarding the "Cooperation Agreement between the City of Lawrence, Kansas, and the University of Kansas" (hereafter Agreement) in letters dated 14 November and 12 December 2004, to this body and to the Lawrence City Commission, respectively. We are pleased that, in subsequent negotiations, the parties have acted on specific recommendations we made, namely, that some University of Kansas Endowment Association properties be excluded from the Agreement, the inclusion of which would amount to spot zoning; that the map [downloadable from the Planning Office website as "KUCityMap.pdf"] be revised, so that it correctly delineates the boundary of the Buffer Area as external to the KU campus; and that Section 13 be amended, so that it stipulates the duration and an evaluation of the Agreement's effectiveness, as well as some requirements for its termination. We believe that these changes are well advised.

We are also encouraged that Section 4b of the amended Agreement includes requirements for setbacks from the public right of way for all new construction within 150 feet of the Campus boundary and for on-site parking for new student housing constructed within this buffer, as well as an enumeration of some of the issues that should be considered by the ad hoc Community Program Advisory Committee. We are concerned, however, by the text of the draft of the Agreement regarding on-site parking. The Agreement currently reads "... and on-site parking will be provided for student housing structures built within the 150 foot buffer area." It is our understanding that, in their negotiations, the parties had agreed that the number of on-site parking spaces would be consistent with requirements in the City's zoning code. We urge you to make this important change in order the ensure that a sufficient number of on-site parking spaces are constructed for each new residential structure built within the 150 foot buffer area. With this exception, and while Staff's assessment of the first draft of this document remains valid that "[t]he one unknown about the Agreement is how well it will work in actual practice," we believe that this Agreement represents a significant improvement over the initial draft considered by the Planning Commission in November.

 

Thank you for your consideration of this matter.

Sincerely,

Gwen Klingenberg

President, Lawrence Association of Neighborhoods