The Springfield-Greene County Park Board is clear to accept a land donation in the James River floodplain from the developers of some 500 acres near the junction of highways 60 and 65.
With a 6-1 vote March 7, Springfield City Council amended 60/65 Partnership LLC’s Planned Development 330 to allow a 10-acre donation, with up to 100 acres of green space possibly coming to the Park Board as the project progresses. Among the changes, the amendment exempts the developer from building a public access road to any donated land and adds language allowing the developer to utilize public and private funds in making public improvements.
In the planned development by 60/65 Partnership that council approved in 2009, as many as 200 acres were set aside for green space, and the developers had sought a joint venture partner to help fund infrastructure work. According to the developers, the economy has held up the $400 million mixed-use lifestyle project.
At a Jan. 10 public hearing, project architect Geoffrey Butler of Butler, Rosenbury & Partners Inc., insisted that language originally crafted with good intentions could prevent the Parks Department from constructing an access road to land he and members of 60/65 Partnership had planned to donate.
During the March 7 meeting, council members discussed a substitute bill to replace the original one drawn up and also considered tabling a vote in the absence of councilmen Doug Burlison and John Rush. Neither the substitute bill nor the tabling were approved.
Councilwoman Cindy Rushefsky said she was a proponent of a substitute bill that would not remove the language that laid responsibility of infrastructure improvements on the developers.
That bill would still have allowed developers to use economic tools such as tax increment financing to assist with the project, according to Planning and Development Director Ralph Rognstad. That bill also would have brought future Park Board plans at the site back before council instead of only seeking approval under an internal administrative review process.
“The original bill does not allow for public input, and I think that’s a mistake,” Rushefsky said. The substitute bill was negated with the passage of the planned development amendment.
Councilman Scott Bailes said he believed “council was speaking out of turn,” in its scrutiny of the possible land donation and the change in language that allows public assistance with infrastructure.
In casting the lone nay vote, Councilman Nick Ibarra disagreed, saying the developers were altering the originally approved ordinance.
“I’m not mad at Mr. Butler for doing his job,” said Ibarra. He noted that council would be neglecting its responsibility to taxpayers by approving the measure.
Councilman Jerry Compton said the city shouldn’t build obstacles to land donations for parks.
“If we are going to make it this difficult for developers to give us some land, the less likely they will be to do it in the future,” Compton said.
Jerry Clark, chairwoman of the Parks Department bond, said negotiation on the land donation would resume with the bill’s approval. A trail that would run parallel to the river connecting to the Galloway Creek trail system is a likely use of the land.
“The planning process is a long process, and the department feels a responsibility to council to seek public input along the way,” Clark said. “We are looking forward to that.”
New bus transfer facility At the close of the March 7 council meeting, Councilman Dan Chiles said he had become aware that City Utilities, in a meeting closed to the public, had selected a possible site for a new bus terminal at the corner of Kimbrough Avenue and Elm Street. CU has been looking for several years to relocate its downtown bus terminal.
Chiles said before plans move forward to take advantage of more than $3 million in federal money for a new transfer facility, the bus route system should be reviewed and public hearings should be held. Chiles said a proposal by CU board member Dan Scott for alternative bus routes that could potentially increase ridership without increasing expenses should be further explored.
Mayor Jim O’Neal asked city staff members to learn more about CU’s closed-door meeting and the status of any transfer-site plans.[[In-content Ad]]
