The Law Offices of

DANIEL L. WATKINS

4311 W. 6th Street, Suite C

Lawrence, Kansas  66049

Telephone:                                                                         danwatkins@sunflower.com                                                                           Facsimile:

(785) 843-0181                                                                                                                                                                                               (785) 749-5652

 

 

 

                                                                        October 20, 2005

Lawrence City Commission

c/o Mayor Boog Highberger

and

Lawrence-Douglas County Metropolitan Planning Commission

c/o Terry Riordan, Chair

6 East 6th Street

Lawrence, KS  66044

RE:      Subdivision Regulations 21-1202-05
West 6th Street 50’ Setback

Dear Commissioners:

In considering text amendments to Article 12 of the Subdivision Regulations and the City Zoning Code related to governmental takings, I believe the whole issue of the special 50’ setback requirement on West 6th Street should be reviewed to determine whether it is needed any longer or makes good planning sense now that Sixth Street right of way has been substantially widened.

The 50’ setback along West 6th Street was adopted in 1990, well before Horizon 2020 was adopted and over a decade before the plans for the current Sixth Street improvements were developed. 

The original impact of Subdivision Regulation 21-1202 was to require a 50’ setback on each side of the road from the then existing 80-100’ right of way corridor on Sixth Street from Monterey Way to the SLT.  This setback has been applied as 6th Street developed on the north side from Monterey Way to Folks Road and on the south side from Folks Road to Congressional.

The right of way corridor along West 6th Street has now increased from its original 80-100’ along the whole route, to approximately 125’ from Monterey Way to Congressional or so and 150’ in the undeveloped areas from west of Congressional to the SLT. 

The 50’ setback requirement establishes a total right of way and setback corridor that is about 175’ wide from Monterey Way to Folks Road (with a 100’ total setback from centerline required on the north side and approximately 75’ from centerline on the previously developed south side); 225’ wide from Folks Road to west of Congressional (with the setback totaling 100’ from roadway centerline on the south side of the road and 125’ on the north side); and 250’ wide from west of Congressional to the SLT in the undeveloped areas (with a 50’ setback off of 75’ of right of way each side of the roadway centerline). 

The area between Folks Road and Congressional now presents a situation where the total required setback on the south side of the road is 100’ (50’ back of the original 50’ of ROW south of the centerline) contrasted to the north side of Sixth Street where the total required setback will be 125’ (50’ setback in addition to the 75’ of Right of Way now in place). 

With the increased right of way and access control now in place along the newly constructed West Sixth Street, there is no reason the City’s normal setback requirements should not apply in this corridor.  There is certainly no reason why setbacks in planned developments should not be determined (or varied from) by Planning and City Commissions action under the normal setback requirements and planning judgments, rather than requiring BZA action for a setback variance from the 50’ setback requirement under a very high standard of proof.

The 50’ setback in all areas where the right of way is now 75’ from the centerline actually encourages sprawl, not good planning, especially as form-driven (e.g., new urbanism) design projects are being encouraged and constructed all over the country.  I represent the developer of Bauer Farm and a 125’ setback from the centerline for this project is not only disproportionate to the 100’ setback on the south side, it undermines sound planning principles which have evolved in the fifteen years since the 50’ setback was put in place and before the substantially widened right of way was acquired.  The emerging form-driven planning standards are manifested in the Bauer Farm mixed use proposal which deserves a fair hearing on its merits.  An outmoded and disproportionate special setback requirement is simply one more hurdle to such consideration.

The Sixth Street Corridor to the SLT now has appropriate right of way, street infrastructure and access control in place.  A super setback is not needed when normal setbacks suffice.  This is especially so on the north side of Sixth Street between Folks Road and Congressional where the resulting 125’ setback from centerline contrasts markedly from the 100’ setback required on the south side.

A more appropriate text amendment would simply eliminate the special 50’ setback requirement, not create the single narrow exception currently proposed. 

In an effort to discourage sprawl and promote better planning, I hope your discussion on the text amendments goes beyond the governmental taking issue and eliminates the special 50’ setback along Sixth Street.  It’s no longer needed and actually results in unintended consequences in this corridor.

                                                                        Sincerely,

 

                                                                        Dan Watkins

DLW:sjr