OFF THE TABLE
A request for smaller lot sizes to be granted for the Windmill Creek development in Platte City has been pulled off the table.
Windmill Creek is a housing development east of I-29 on the south side of Hwy. 92 in Platte City.
Shawn Duke, engineer and project manager for the Windmill Creek developers, notified the City of Platte City via email this week that the request for smaller lots in phase three of the development is being withdrawn.
‘We would like to withdraw our application to amend the preliminary plat for Windmill Creek at this time. Our plan is to proceed with the previously approved plan with lots that comply with the minimum lot size per the currently approved R1-8 zoning for the development,” Duke said in an email to Summer Lutz, building inspector/codes compliance office for Platte City.
The request had been presented at a July 9 meeting of the Platte City Planning and Zoning Commission. Members of the zoning board voted to set aside the request until an Aug. 6 meeting, expressing a desire to hear from the fire department to see if the shorter distance between residences would cause fire safety concerns.
There were multiple speakers–existing residents in Windmill Creek– in opposition to the proposal at the July 9 meeting.
“When we invested in Windmill Creek, we were sold on a community defined by spacious lots, community pools, walking trails–as described on the Windmill Creek website and the prospect of larger, higher value homes in future phases, homes that currently sell for over $500,000, a testament to the high standards we were sold on,” said Jacqueline Williams. “This is evident by the first home built in phase two, currently listed at $569,000 and the two new homes currently for sale in phase one with an average list price of $552,450.
“Decreasing the value of the homes from the mid $500,000s to below $400,000 will have a significant negative impact on the property values of phase one houses, reducing the current tax revenue brought in,” she said.
The revision request sought to reduce required lot sizes to a minimum of 6,000 sq. ft. from the current requirement of 8,000 sq. ft., and to reduce the minimum lot width frontage to 52 ft. from the current requirement of 70 ft.
Notably, the developers also requested to reduce the side yard setbacks from eight feet to five feet between residences.
The revised plat would have increased the total number of lots in phase three from 54 lots to 88 lots, an increase of 34 lots.
Lutz had recommended approval of the request in a staff report.
