HomeMy WebLinkAboutA003 - Letter dated September 27, 1990 from Richard Bliss BROADMOOR ENTERPRISES, INC.
Richard K. Bliss, Presid'_'iit
50 Elberta Drive
Sedona, AZ 86336
(602) 282-6117
September 27, 1990
Members of the City Council
City of Ames
Ames, IA 50010
Honorable Mayor and Council Members:
The Planning and Zoning Commission met Sept. 19, 1990 to review the zoning
on the undeveloped thirteen acres of land we jointly own with Richard and
Jack: Coy, land commonly referred to as the Prairie View Subdivision. After
its recent hearing, the Planning and Zoning Commission voted to recommend to
Council that the area be downzoned from its present R-3 classification to
R1-6.
Their decision to downzone was based on various statements and letters
presented to the Commission asserting that I, along with the Coy partners,
had assured the lot purchasers that the West (undeveloped) Prairie View area
would be developed in a similar manner to the First Addition, known as
"Prairie View East" .
I cannot speak for the Coys or their sons on what they might have promised
the purchasers of lots owned by the Coy partnership. But I can emphatically
deny that I ever stated to anyone that we intended to develop the West
Prairie View area exactly the same as the East area.
I have always regarded the South end of the property as particularly
suitable for single family residences (see Exhibit #1 ) and I am certain, had
we progressed with development of the land, we would have done just this.
David Moorhead, Superintendent of the Ames Public Schools, contacted me in
the early 1980s to inquire whether we would be interested in buying the land
owned by the school board adjoining our property at the South end. This is
an area approximately 2200 feet deep, located between our Prairie View
Subdivision and the Nature Conservancy area to the South. At Mr. Moorhead's
request, I attended a school board meeting to explore the possibility of
purchase. The school board rejected the idea, but the area could have tied
in nicely with the South Prairie View residential area and opened up a
landlocked area.
Prairie View West adjoins Schilletter Village, so the R-3 zoning has seemed
a logical way to develop the area, particularly the West side of the land.
We had a definite interest in exploring the possibility of higher density
housing in condominiums or PUD's (Planned Unit Developments), which were
being encouraged by the City of Ames Land Use studies at that time and
since.
In the early 1980s, interest rates soared along with inflation, pricing many
families out of the housing market. The economy played havoc with the home
building industry and as the demand for residential lots became practically
nil, the land development partnership put Prairie View West on hold.
During this period, the City Council reviewed zoning for various undeveloped
areas in Ames and, in behalf of the partnership, I appeared before Council
to request a continuation of R-3 zoning so that we could maintain our
building options pending improvements in the economy and rapidly changing
housing needs of the Ames community. The Council agreed to maintain R-3,
and I think: it was a fair decision. Since that era, Ames has seen a number
of quality higher-density PUD developments built, such as The Green and
Stonebrooke, which offer appropriate single-family housing for young
families as well as retired persons. Land development has been
disproportionately expensive in Ames, due to the scarcity of undeveloped
acreage within the city and extremely rigid municipal building codes and
requirements. Many young families have been unable to find affordable
housing in the city and live in nearby towns, commuting to their Ames
employment.
It is necessary to clearly explain my responsibilities for the development
of Prairie View Subdivision. Initially, I contacted the Allen family for
the purchase of the Prairie View land. I alone worked with the City of Ames
developing several versions of platting for the undeveloped land. Working
closely with the City engineering department, we developed an excellent
subdivision plan which included R-3 areas and would have allowed for logical
options for adapting to changing housing demands which might occur in future
years.
The City engineering department felt that there was no question that the
temporary 20th Street deadend eventually would be extended into the Prairie
View area. On this basis, we incurred several thousand dollars of
engineering and survey expense in 1976, planning what was to be the
Bicentennial Subdivision, with an excellent traffic flow and offering
multiple housing choices for use of the lots.
The Council, however, voted to maintain the dead end on 20th Street and
terminate the road extension. This decision radically changed the approach
we had to take for Prairie View development, since the only access to the
Subdivision would be from 24th Street. I then developed a new plat layout
for the property and it was accepted by Council in 1976.
I have used the pronoun "I" because I must emphasize that I alone did all
the work: with survey and engineering consultants and the City of Ames in
planning the subdivision, by mutual agreement with Jack and Richard Coy, my
development partners.
By studying the lot dimensions, you will note that the First Addition allows
almost 60 extra feet of land depth for the future Prairie View West
development, so that we could develop deeper lots for options of PUD or
condominium developments with adequate off-street parking. There is 660
feet of frontage of the Prairie View area abutting 24th Street and only 300
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3
feet of this frontage was allocated to Prairie View First Addition. I then
believed and do now believe that Jack and Richard Cog agreed with this
development zoning, which has clearly maintained our further lot planning
options. Upon seeing the videotaped proceedings before the Planning and
Zoning Commission and the packet of letters solicited by Nate and Annette
Burnham as principal leaders of the Prairie View Homeowners Association, it
was indeed a shock to see a number of ill-advised allegations regarding
zoning classifications which have been established for a number of years.
I was particularly shocked to see the letter written by Phil Coy, Jack Coy`s
son, stating that from 1979 his father "gave me control of his lots" and
that Phil Cog had personally assured Prairie View residents that the West
area mould be "similar to PVE, that they had nothing to worry about, and I
(Phil Cog) mould make sure that PVW mould be as I (Phil Cog) always said. "
I have never been advised by Jack Coy that his son had "control" of his
father's partnership in the Cog-Bliss land development partnership.
Furthermore, it was Jack Coy and Richard Coy who were extremely anxious to
initiate action to market the Prairie View undeveloped land at this time and
who made contact with the real estate agent involved. On this basis, it
seems hard to believe that Jack Cog mould want to initiate a sale
contradicting what Phil Coy presumably had been told by his father and
passed along to various Prairie View residents. Certainly Phil Coy has
never had the authority to speak in my behalf and has never participated in
the development of this land.
With Phil Coy`s widely-quoted assertions that Prairie View West development
mould "be similar" to the East area, I can certainly understand homeowners'
reactions to the news that the West area may not be exactly like or
"similar" to the East development.
In summing up, it needs to be reemphasized that the South end of the Prairie
View West area adjoining the school property (See Exhibit One) is
particularly suited for residential single family lots, and had we continued
to develop and build, we mould have moved this way. Keeping the R-3 zoning
option open and reserving the right to develop higher-density condominiums,
PUD clustered housing, and limited rental housing is a logical approach to
development of the remaining land North, in accord with higher building
costs and changing housing needs in Ames.
I think I have maintained a reputation for integrity and fairness in all m8
dealings with clients, my partners in the Coy-Bliss land developments, and
all persons with whom l have dealt during 39 years of building in Ames.
Bliss
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