Columbia commission approves of ‘Ashford Place’ subdivision despite pushback from residents; plan heads to City Council
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
East Columbia residents packed city hall on Thursday night to express concerns over a proposed subdivision known as "Ashford Place."
After more than two hours of public comments opposing the plan, the Planning and Zoning Commission voted to approve the project, sending it on to City Council for final approval.
Troy Miller Properties is asking the City of Columbia to approve plans for triplexes resulting in 77 buildings on more than 24 acres off East Broadway near the Brooks subdivision. The first construction phase will include 23 buildings; the second phase will be 36 buildings; and the third phase will include 18 residential buildings and improvements to Sagemoor Street and El Chaparral Avenue.
However, residents near the Brooks subdivision fear the “high-density rentals” will increase traffic and reduce safety, while also decreasing property value. City staff said it received 91 written comments from residents about the plan. Of those, only four were in favor of the project.
The project had already been tabled twice by the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission, setting the stage for Thursday’s public hearing. More than 50 residents filed into the council chambers, with public comments lasting more than two hours.
Susan Phillips moved into the Brooks subdivision three months ago, but said she is now having second thoughts.
“The idea that there would be that much traffic flowing in and out of this place, no I would not have moved here at all,” Phillips told ABC 17 News.
Yellow yard signs have been scattered across the Brooks area reading “STOP Triplex Apartments Adjoining the Brooks!” Before Tuesday’s meeting, resident Fern Walls handed out more signs at City Hall, each featuring a bold red "X" through the words “Ashford Place.”
Walls said she moved to Columbia from Texas last fall. But like Phillips, she is now having regrets.
“We may sell and leave if it happens,” Walls said. “We are very upset about it. Mainly the traffic flow is going to double or triple because the triplexes are going to be 77 buildings, and that the traffic is going to be a major.”
“The children, the dogs, the walking, the peace, the quiet. And now we're going to add all these I mean, there's like a lot of units and there's three per unit. And if they are all driving cars, it doesn't make sense,” Phillips said.
Traffic topped the list of concerns for many residents at the meeting, especially how added cars could impact safety for children who play in the neighborhood.
“Everybody's concerned about the extra traffic,” Wells said. “Right down at the corner of Sagemoor and WW there is not a light in there. It needs to be a traffic circle.”
In response, the city plans to extend El Chaparral Avenue and is considering traffic-calming measures on Hoylake Drive. Columbia officials also pointed to a 2017 traffic study, saying the project would have no significant impact on the area.
“Streets in the Brooks were built to accommodate the proposed traffic. So while there is additional traffic coming from this project stage, more and Hoylake were expanded or grew to neighborhood and major major collector standards to account for that,” Tim Crockett, the engineer overseeing the project, said during the meeting.
Residents who spoke at the meetings also worried about the capacity of infrastructure
“You're going to hear some correspondence tonight that talks about ‘that's high density apartments’”, Crockett told the commission. “Honestly, 3.2, that's in the range of single family densities all over Columbia. Most of our densities that we have in Columbia for single family are 1.5-to-4 units per acre.”
