A process that has taken more than a year finally ended Monday night after council approved of a planned unit development (PUD) on Boerger Road and Route 38.
The application for the Ewing Meadows development passed 5-2, with councilpersons Deborah Groat and Alan Seymour being the two dissenting votes.
The application for the development originally came before the Marysville Planning Commission Jan. 3 last year. Since then, developer Ryan Homes has altered its plan by taking out several lots and varying up the units’ facades.
Since it reached council late last year, the developer has accepted several concessions requested by the city. These include barring garden sheds that are on properties bordering neighboring plots, moving a bike path away from Route 38 and extending one of the roads in the development to allow emergency vehicle access.
Councilperson Henk Berbee said after reviewing the plan again, he believes the development does keep in the rural character of the area.
Councilperson Nevin Taylor said the development is much better than a similar plan that had been proposed years ago.
“This package is much more desirable than the other one,” Taylor said. “I want to commend you on that, and I appreciate your patience.”
Adjacent property owner Dave Gibson spoke to council against the development. He said he’d been to planning commission meetings before and his protests “fell on deaf ears.”
“It should have been worked with before it ever got to you, the council,” he said.
Councilperson Mark Reams asked if the developer would be able to sell some of those bordering Ewing Meadows lots to those property owners for a discounted price. Smith said they could likely allow that, but at market value.
“I think the easy answer is ‘yes,’ but it’s a bit more nuanced than that,” said Gary Smith, speaking for Ryan Homes. “Every lot owner is expected to join the homeowner’s association.”
Councilperson Tracy Richardson said of all the parties that have been involved, the Gibson family has benefitted the least. She said they’re the only family who still has a large number of lots abutting it.
“We have one family who sincerely is in a difficult situation,” she said. “Is there any way you could work at the cost of the land with them?”
Smith said Ryan Homes has worked with the Gibsons by agreeing to additional landscaping and increasing the buffer bordering Ewing Meadows. He said they’re allowing Dave Gibson to personally pick where trees along his property are planted.
He said budging on the price of the land is “problematic,” since they’d need to raise the lot cost for every other lot to cover the development.
In her closing comments, Groat said while she didn’t believe the development fit with the area, she commended her fellow council members for keeping with the process.
“I don’t know if I’m going to like this development,” she said. “But that’s the democratic process.”
In other council news:
-J.R. Rausch and Nevin Taylor were re-elected by council as mayor and vice mayor, respectively. While Rausch was unopposed, Taylor beat Reams 4-3.