Politics & Government
City Rezoning Private Property: Wildwood Council Members Divided
HEAR DEBATE POINTS via VIDEO: After four years of multiple debates, research and more discussions, a set of Wildwood property owners say city representatives are devaluing their property by changing its zoning designation.
Wildwood property owners of a large tract of undeveloped land inside of the city's Town Center, commonly referred to as "The Spanos Property," have pleaded with city council members over the past few meetings not to change its zoning designation. John and Pete Spanos said they bought the property that had commercial zoning in 2005, but fear the new, recommended land usage for mixed-use development would limit the amount of commercial use possible.
The Spanos' owners repeatedly have aired concerns about how splitting the land use designation would negatively impact the parcel's attractiveness to potential buyers.
Council members differ in views about this matter, with some saying the suggested change does devalue it and others saying it's all a part of the city's commitment to revisiting its 10-year Town Center Plan and continuous growth patterns.
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"The Spanos property should not be down-zoned. To now try to down-zone us is not OK. We're aware, and have well researched, our options. It should not even be up here for down-zoning consideration," said Pete Spanos at Monday evening's city council meeting to council members.
The land is located at 2520 and 2516 Highway 109, on the east side of State Route 109, south of State Route 100.
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It was designated as a workplace district. Then its designation was recommended to be split into neighborhood edge at the rear/eastern part of the property and workplace districts on the front two-thirds/western part of it under the Town Center Plan’s Regulating Plan, which was adopted by the Planning and Zoning Commission on March 1, 2010. Click here for a very detailed summary of the historic action swirling around this property, as issued by Joe Vujnich, Wildwood director of planning and parks.
"No one wants to buy a piece of property with two designations on it. A commercial builder doesn't want to build residential. The residential builder doesn't want to build commercial," said council member Ron James, Ward 6.
The Spanos property is one of four different private properties that have been tied up in controversy and a long stalemate about approving plans for the Town Center that were adopted by Planning and Zoning Commissioners. See related article: Wildwood Mayor Vetoes City Council Vote
"The Spanos paid for commercial property, and for some reason, we're changing the rules," said council member Jim Kranz, Ward 7.
Most recently, council members had sent the property status project back to the Planning/Economic Development/Parks Committee for further review. PEP members recommended, by a vote of 5-3, the split designation adopted by the Planning and Zoning Commission be retained.
Council members passed a motion on March 11, by a vote of 9-7, to prepare legislation to designate the Spanos property as mixed-use. But a supermajority of the council, or at least 11 favorable votes, will be needed to approve the legislation because it changes a component of the city's master plan.
"Some are calling it odd to split a parcel, but it is progressive to get mixed-use development on these type of pieces," said Paul Wojciechowski, who said he was a volunteer of the 18-member, citizen-led Town Center Advisory Panel (TCAP) who proposed the new land usage recommendations. The panel spent approximately 17 months reviewing the Town Center situation and possibilities.
Prior to Wildwood's incorporation in 1995, this particular property housed an illegal operation of several businesses by a previous landowner, Steve Amant. New Wildwood officials found Amant had not been dealing within St. Louis County regulations for the previous 12 years. Wildwood in 1998 changed the property's zoning district designation from the non-urban residence district to the planned commercial district to accommodate the pattern of development that that originated there since approximately 1983, according to city documents.
After the Spanos bought the property in 2005, another rezoning process began. That zoning request reflected a change from the existing planned commercial district to an amended planned commercial district so that converted residential structures on the property could be removed to make way for a proposed 45,000-square-foot indoor recreational facility the Spanos wanted to build. They are owners of Vetta Sports in St. Louis.
The Spanos did not move forward with the new facility, after a number of questions were raised by Planning and Zoning commissioners regarding the proposed size and architecture of the building. Minutes from the related meetings indicate concerns from nearby neighbors regarding noise, traffic and lighting impacts, said Vujnich. After the withdrawal of the rezoning request in 2008, action regarding the property designation subsided.
"We should move away from things that got us in problems in the past. With Wildwood priding itself in being forward-thinking, the plan of mixed-use is cutting edge and progressive," said Wojciechowski at Monday's council meeting.
Wojciechowski also is running as a council member for Ward 8 on the April 2 ballot. He is unopposed, and previously served on the city council from 2004-2006.
Wildwood held a public hearing about the Spanos property on March 8, 2010, and heard comments, questions and concerns about the updated plan, particularly from the owners of the Spanos properties, who expressed reservations about the development potential of the two lots. PEP committee members held another public hearing about the property on Dec. 18, 2012.
The city adopted its original plan for the Town Center in 1998, and a 2009 update was adopted by the Planning and Zoning Commission in March 2010 by a 6-4 vote.
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