Edmond Planning Commission opposes zoning change
For The Oklahoman
EDMOND — Residents pushed back and the Edmond Planning Commission listened, voting to give the Edmond City Council a negative opinion concerning a requested zoning change at Fox Lake Lane.
At question is the property where a proposed wellness park and two hotels would be built.
The Edmond Planning Commission voted 3-1, opposing a zoning change during a packed meeting this week. Board member Mark Hoose voted in favor. Board member Rob Rainey was not in attendance.
“There is more that can be done and you know that,” Planning Commission Chairman Barry Moore said.
“There is no reason for these variances.”
Several variances are a concern for neighbors and the commission, including the hotel height limit, setback for the hotels and changes in the parking lot landscape.
Neighbors were unable to discuss the project with developer Jim Tapp and his attorney, Randel Shadid, during a community connection meeting last week. Neither attended the gathering, although the purpose of the meeting, according to city officials, was for residents to meet with developers.
Shadid was unable to attend because he had to be at the Guthrie Planning Commission meeting that evening.
Tapp spoke at Tuesday's planning commission meeting, but at one point residents near the proposed development area began chanting, “Threat. Threat. Threat.”
“If there was any way we can separate the emotion, that way we can address the issue here,” Tapp said.
Before Tuesday’s meeting, two neighborhood petitions that had been circulated collected more than 200 signatures and were emailed to multiple city officials.
“The extent to which approving the rezoning shall detrimentally affect adjacent properties must also be considered,” the petition stated.
There are already multiple hotels north of the Fox Lake neighborhood on Meline Drive.
“It is an unreasonable request on the variances,” board member Bill Moyer said.
The hotels will have to comply with the Interstate 35 zoning requirements.
Tapp also developed the area south of the area where Walmart and Sam’s Club are located. That development also received opposition at the time.
“I bump into these people at the shopping center all of the time,” Tapp said.
The planned hotels could be 15 feet higher than the current zoning requirement of 40 feet if the city council approves the variances.
“Another comment (by Shadid) was that we are zoning down . ... How is that down? That is nearly 10 feet up,” neighborhood representative Matt Thomas said.
Thomas said, if needed, the development could be taken to district court.
Neighbors believe that those staying in a hotel could look down into the neighborhood pool, but it is already visible by driving down Fox Lake Lane and does not have a privacy fence around it.
For now, the two proposed hotels could include 169 rooms in total, with the northern hotel planned to be a Residence Inn by Marriott and the other one a Tru hotel by Hilton.
Both hotels would be 55,000 square feet and set back 25 feet from Fox Lake Lane. A portion of the hotel would be located in a floodplain.
There would be a minimum of 169 parking spaces for the hotels, along with a new exit onto the frontage road, which will not include a stoplight.
In parts of the floodplain, the developer would give the city land to develop a wellness park that would allow a connection to the Trails at Spring Creek.
The park would be donated to the city once the site plan is approved for the hotels, allowing them to build on the floodplain.
“We are not involved in the development of the park,” Shadid said.
While the plans could change, the developer will have to come back before the planning commission and city council for an approval of the site plan.
The zoning change proposal will go before the Edmond City Council at 5:30 p.m. Feb. 12.
If approved, Shadid said a site plan would be submitted fairly quickly and that they are ready to build if approved.