Philips tract plan breeds new tensions

City officials must balance development and watershed plans.

By GAURAV GHOSE, Columbia Missourian
June 16, 2003

Philips tract developer Elvin Sapp presented a formal request last Thursday to the City Council to annex and rezone the 489-acre property that will include single-family homes, a park, retail developments, townhouses and condominiums, and research and office parks.

Now that a formal plan is proposed, city policy makers have to decide how a watershed plan will be considered in conjunction to the development plans. Residents and watershed advocates wanted to have a plan in place prior to Sapp’s development plan.

Alyce Turner, a representative of the Boone County Smart Growth Coalition, regrets that there is no clear watershed policy in place that would help in responding to the development and water quality protection plans of the developer.

“If only there was a policy to refer to in order to decide on the developer’s plans it would not have come to this state of affairs,” Turner said.

Barbara Hoppe, co-chair of Smart Growth Coalition’s steering committee, said, “Whether they have an official watershed plan in place or not may not be necessary if they have in mind to how much development the watershed can hold.

“Experts of the developer must show where it has been done successfully over a period of time,” she said. “You can say anything, but you need to show evidence.”

Tony Davis, vice president of the Clear Creek Neighborhood Association, said until the City Council carefully reviews Sapp’s development, they are opposed to any plans.

“We are not against development per se,” Davis said.

The Clear Creek Neighborhood Association will meet Wednesday to issue an official statement on Sapp’s plan.

“Planning on a watershed basis is a good way to approach the issue,” said Jim Loveless, Ward Four councilman. “I don’t know what form it takes before it comes to the City Council. I think it will be first taken up by the city Planning and Zoning Commission before it comes to the council.

“Who knows what progress will be made on the watershed plan during this period,” Loveless said.

Loveless also said each aspect of the development will be considered as the issues arise.

“All of these won’t detract us from responding to development requests, each on its own merit,” Loveless said.

Mayor Darwin Hindman said a watershed plan before development probably is not viable.

“Now we should allow the developer to make his case,” Hindman said. “Here is a developer with an excellent record, and he has also used reputable resources to develop his plans.

“We are going to be in a classic position of varying opinions and the council will have to come to a hard judgment after considering all of them.”

Hindman said the City Council will consult with the storm water panel, which is a collaboration of city and county officials, watershed experts and individuals who worked with the Little Bonne Femme Watershed Plan. Mark Farnen of Woodruff Communications, the firm handling the public relations for Sapp, said the developer is going to have a public meeting next week. The time and place will be announced in a few days.

“In this meeting all stakeholders and interested participants will be presented with solid scientific facts,” Farnen said.

“We invite open and candid discussions and if objections are accurate we will not disregard them,” he said. “We may not be able to meet all objections, but we are confident that our study is scientifically more accurate. There is no guesswork here. We’ll do a good job.”

Farnen said Sapp’s engineers have taken the environment issue seriously.

“They have carefully studied and anticipated what would be the impact of our development plans on the environment,” Farnen said.