Development will bring 762 new housing units to the city. Also, Council approves first read of amendments reducing some residential density regulations.
by Adele Uphaus
MANAGING EDITOR AND CORRESPONDENT
Fredericksburg City Council on Tuesday gave the final go-ahead to the Neon project, which will bring 762 new dwelling units to Celebrate Virginia South.
Council unanimously (6-0, with one abstention) approved a second reading of a request to rezone two vacant parcels, totaling 63 acres and owned by entities of the Silver Companies, from Planned Development-Commercial to Planned Development-Mixed Use and Planned Development-Residential.
The project’s general development plan proposes 762 multifamily dwelling units, a 18,370 square foot clubhouse to include a co-working space, fitness center and event space, and 25,000 square feet of commercial use.
The plan includes voluntary cash proffers of $3.2 million to mitigate the project’s impact on public school and public safety capacity.
According to a financial analysis conducted for the developer by Chmura, the Neon development will generate about $3.4 million in annual tax revenue for the city.
The Planning Commission in August voted to recommend approval of the PD-MU rezoning for the Neon project. However, it recommended denial of the PD-R portion because the current development plan is still inconsistent with some aspects of the city’s comprehensive plan.
One issue is that the majority of the project’s multifamily housing is located in an area where the comprehensive plan would like to see “less intense housing types such as semi-detached housing (duplex, triplex, or quadplex) or townhomes,” according to an analysis of the project prepared for Tuesday’s meeting by the planning department.
A second issue identified by the Planning Commission is that project’s emphasis on multifamily rental units conflicts with a goal identified in the comprehensive plan to increase the city’s homeownership rate to at least 40%.
According to the 2021 American Community Survey, 39% of housing units in the city are owner-occupied and 61% are rentals. The Neon project, with 762 rental units, would change those rates to 37% owner-occupied and 63% rentals, according to the planning department.
The third issue is the inclusion of gates in the development plan, which conflicts with a policy against gated communities in the comprehensive plan.
City Council in November however determined that “on-balance the project meets many elements of the (comprehensive) plan,” the planning department’s analysis states.
There was no discussion from the dais about the project on Tuesday and no one from the community spoke during a public hearing on the project.
“We look forward to seeing the project completed,” said Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw after the vote to approve.
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Once again the city council ignores its own hard-working planning commission which was working from an adopted Comprehensive Plan. So if plans are developed through a public process, with public input, and publicly adopted as public policy, which constituency is the council serving?