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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09022025 Planning & Zoning Laydown - Emails to PZ - ComDev250902 PZ Laydown - emails to PZ - ComDev LAYDOWN by P&Z Chair for P&Z Resolution 2025-027 Greetings, I am writing to express my opposition to the proposed changes in Zoning in the Dimond/Birch region of Forest Acres Subdivision from Rural Residential to R3 Multifamily Residential. I am a resident on Afognak Avenue in Forest Acres. We specifically purchased a good-sized piece of land in an area with single family homes for the quiet and rural nature of the area. Had I wanted to live in an area with more homes, residents and overall traffic and activity, I would have elected a different region of Seward to call home. We are enjoying the feel of a rural residential area and do not wish for an already in place zoning regulation to be replaced which would then change the number of homes in our immediate community. Please do not change zoning regulation 2025-027 from rural to multifamily. Is the resolution one that will be voted on by the City Council? How and who will be involved in the decision -making process, and when will it be decided? Sincerely, Danelle Jefson Greetings, I am writing to you today in my opposition to the rezoning of Birch and Dimond Street from RR to R3. My family has lived at for just over nine years. Birch Street is a lovely street consisting of single-family homes with large lines. There are many children that ride their bikes on this street, play in each other's yards, the neighbors are friendly, and the area has been single family homes for many decades. I would like to see this area stay single family homes, due to the children I do not want the additional traffic, I want to see families who can set down roots in this town owning their own homes - something they can call their own, and I do not want to see houses bought and tore down for multifamily complexes to go in. I hope this neighborhood and these homes can occupy single families for decades to come, just as our home has. Please let me know if you have any questions. Thank you. Sincerely, Sarah Tougas Harbour Holdings LLC Hello, My name is Jennifer Appel. My husband, Karl Appel and I have lived at for almost 18 years now, and we have owned it since the end of 2021. I want to express my strong opposition on the record to the rezoning of our neighborhood (properties including 2400 Dimond Blvd, 2400, 2404, 2406 and 2500 Birch St, and 2411 and 2410 Spruce St) - from Rural Residential to Multi -family. One of the best parts of our neighborhood is the small family feel of our neighborhood, and we would love to keep it as such. We do not want to expand our neighborhood to include potential for taller condos, duplexes on these properties that will then be used for things like nightly rentals and employee housing. Traffic increases alone would change the way we would be able to allow our children and grandchildren to play in our neighborhood. I also wanted to point out that of the three people that signed the application, one of course is the applicant who submitted the packet, one is a person who signed twice due to their property being subdivided recently and that person does not live on either property which is a requirement for nightly rentals were this to pass, and the only other person that signed lives in Girdwood. That lot - 2400 Birch St - was purchased on the l lth of April and then the petition was signed on the 15th of April. As you can see, those of us who are living here are not the ones in favor and did not sign the petition other than the one person who is requesting this for her own financial gain. While I do understand the need for more housing in Seward, there are plenty of other areas that can still be expanded into without changing the landscape of the neighborhood where we have lived for so long. Thank you for your consideration on this matter. I do intend to be at the meeting on September 2nd. Sincerely, Jenn Appel August 26, 2025 To the Planning and Zoning Commission; My name is Clinton Paul. I have lived in Seward for 43 years. I currently reside at in Forest Acres, where I have resided for the past 22 years. I am writing in opposition to the petition to rezone lots on Birch and Spruce Streets. Due to moose hunting I am unable to attend the Planning and Zoning meeting on September 2, 2025. Forest Acres is a long-standing residential neighborhood that was developed after WW2 on what was Fort Raymond. Its original intent was to provide large residential lots for single family homes and still is today. Forest acres is the premier residential subdivision within the City of Seward. Many of these homes, especially on Birch St. were built in the 1950's, like mine was. The Tri-plex at 2403 Birch St. which I believe, is the only multi -family structure in Forest Acres and it was originally I'm told the Cook House or Mess Hall for Fort Raymond. We are all aware of the housing shortage in Seward, but it is Residential Single Family homes we are short of, not Apartments, Multi -Family or B and B's. Single Family Homes are the foundation of any community. Where families put down roots and grow the community. Forest Acres and especially Birch Street is one of those places. I raised my family here. Apartments for the most part are temporary housing until a home can be found. I would be greatly saddened for this beautiful northern part of the City of Seward become what many parts of Seward have become, where single family homes have been torn down or converted to make way for transient housing. In closing, I hope this is not another instance where a council person has used their position to further their own personal agenda to the detriment of the City of Seward and its residents. Respectfully yours, Clinton Paul This a note of opposition to the rezone referred to in Seward Planning & Zoning Commission's Res. 2025-027 recommending approval of a land amendment in Forest Acres. We own lots on Dimond Blvd. across the street from the area of interest. The more compelling reasons this action should be denied are: •increased traffic load •there are numerous intersections and driveway accesses onto Dimond here already •the stop at Dimond &Hemlock is largely ignored now •there are no sidewalks •Forest Acres is a designated "Hazardous" school route, pedestrians will be squeezed onto the roadway in winter low light conditions by snow berms. Please deny the rezone for these parcels and retain the safer designation of "RR" for our neighborhood. Please share this message with commission members and Community Development Director, Daniel Meunickwith my thanks. Linda Sewall Sent from my iPhone Dear Seward Planning and Zoning Commissioners, Forest Acres is a older rural neighborhood rich with history and beauty. It is quiet neighborhood. Kids play in the street; we rented our places long term instead of nightly; the streets are narrow with no shoulders. We have fault lines from the 1964 earthquake! Now we have a big new subdivision right above us sending sending traffic through the neighborhood. We are around the block from the dump and down the block from Mountain Haven. There is a new stop sign at the corner of Hemlock and Ash because of recorded accidents. Our infrastructure is full. We now have traffic backup on Hemlock when trying to enter the Seward Highway. The Forest Acres campground was already rejected, this proposed rezoning is across the street from that rejection. This rezone proposal is inappropriate for this location also. Thank you so much for reading my letter, and I especially thank you so much for your service to our community. Sincerely, Maria Sellitto (Marie) Greetings - I am writing regarding the rezoning application 2025-027 that is on the agenda for public hearing on September 2nd. Unfortunately, despite the overwhelming impact that this rezoning could have on the surrounding properties and neighborhood, meaningful information about this proposed action, including the application itself or any part of the land owners/developers project plan, has not been published and available for public review less than 5 business days before the hearing. Rezoning from the restrictive RR to broad R3 district is a major change as opposed to a rezone to a lower population density district like R1 or R2 - and warrants extra dissemination of information to the neighborhood in order to make an informed decision to support or oppose. Especially during the overlapping summer season and first few weeks of school - Sewardites need time to review complex information before galvanizing opinions. I live nearby the area proposed for rezone, but not close enough to receive a directed public notice as a neighbor. I am only aware of this proposal due to actively seeking out information, closely reading the public notice signs, and searching the Internet and social media. Other than the addresses and proposed new zoning district I do not know any of the relevant facts to the proposed action. I am leaving on an out of state trip the day that this rezone proposal is slated for release to the project, so will not have the luxury of reading through it on a large computer monitor. I am not able to attend the hearing. I request that the Seward Planning and Zoning Commission postpone the public hearing for Rezone application 2025-027 until the details and all non -confidential aspects of the rezoning application are available for thorough public review for at least 10 business days. A project of this magnitude and degree of change should justify at least two weeks of informed public notice about changes that could drastically change the nature of an entire subdivision. Thank you for your hard work and your willingness to ensure that community planning and land use decisions are made in a thoughtful way with conscientious public input. David Paperman Seward City Resident. My name is Jean Garcia -Beck and I oppose the rezoning request on Dimond, Birch, and Spruce blocks. I live on Dimond Blvd and do not wish to see this area full of tourists. This is one area of town where we have year round and family homes. Back in 2022, I opened up my house to a limited 50% for nightly rentals. I initially thought it was unfair that I couldn't rent out 100% of my home due to zoning. There were many other families looking to turn their homes into nightly rentals, but were stuck with the limitations. We did not seek to change zoning to benefit ourselves. Looking back now, I see how great our neighborhood is because we have permanent families living here. I believe the zoning is right for our area. It's the one subdivision in Seward that isn't taken up by temporary housing or nightly rentals other than Casie Warner's property. I agree that it would be great to have more housing in Seward, but out of city limits, where there is more room and less taxes put upon the community. Jean Garcia (Beck) Seward Middle & High School Teacher Migrant Education Tutor SHS Booster Club President Seward High School Cheerleading Coach Alaska Society for Technology in Education Treasurer "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." -Michael Scott Please forward to Community Development Administrators and the Planning and Zoning Commission. Dear Chair Griswold and Members of the Commission, My name is Robert Geller, and I own the property a, one of the lots included in the Forest Acres rezone request. I want to share my support for this rezone from Rural Residential to R3 and explain why it makes sense both for my property and for our community. I'm writing by email because I work in the marine industry and run my boat out of the Seward Harbor. Unfortunately, I'll be out of town on September 2nd when the Commission meets to discuss this rezone application, so I won't be able to speak in person. I still wanted to make sure my perspective was included in the record. I have almost an acre of land that is currently undeveloped. With an R3 designation, I'll have more flexibility in how I can use my property. My plan is to build a home for myself while also including space for year-round rentals. This would not only help me make the most of my property but would also add to the limited long-term housing options available in Seward. I'd also like to include a shop in the floor plan, which R-3 zoning would allow. The City's own zoning brochures highlight the importance of flexible land use, supporting housing needs, and encouraging development that fits within the character of our neighborhoods. This rezone aligns with those principles. It will let me responsibly develop my property, while also contributing to the larger need for stable housing and thoughtful growth in Forest Acres. I recognize that zoning decisions affect the whole neighborhood, and I want to be clear that my intent is to develop in a way that fits the character of the area. I see this as an opportunity to create a primary residence, add housing options that serve year-round residents, and do so in a way that makes good use of the land without overburdening nearby properties. For these reasons, I respectfully ask the Commission to recommend approval of this rezone. Thank you for your time and consideration. Sincerely, Robert Geller Hello! I am Kathi Davis, a born and raised Sewardite, residing at Seward, AK and long-time employee of Seward Elementary School. Please count me as adamantly opposed to the Land Use Plan amendment application to rezone seven properties in Forest Acres from rural residential to multi -family residential. I lived at 2411 Cedar Street, our family home, while attending high school in the mid- 60's, and we were the last house heading up to Japp Creek, solid woods behind us. Coberly's covenant had set up Forest Acres to be one acre lots, thus the name. Once he passed away, no longer was that covenant honored. Now that Mt. Haven is in the neighborhood and new homes being built, including the new subdivision between Olympic Circle and Afognak Street, traffic has increased tremendously with both private vehicles and heavy equipment. Vehicles run the 4-way stop on Cedar and Ash constantly, speed through our residential streets, just making it so unsafe for our children to ride their bikes around "the hood". Even walking your dog is often a challenging event. Many drivers don't even slow down when they see children playing outside. Several are on their phones. My grandchildren know to avoid Ash Street unless they have an adult with them and that is because of all the traffic, the speeding and running through the intersections. My grandson, who lives with me, spends as much time as he can outside playing, riding bikes with cousins and friends. Used to be our warning was to watch out for moose and bears, now it is speeders and unsafe drivers. There are actually plenty of houses in Seward if owners didn't close them up for the winter or charge exorbitant seasonal rent. Just drive around and check out all the empty residences, all these homes being sold to out-of-towners who just want a place to stay for the summer, park their boat or motorhome for the winter. It is mind blowing! The last thing Forest Acres needs are condos or apartment buildings bringing more transient people to the neighborhood. Thank you for the opportunity to voice my opinion and for you taking the time to hear my concerns. Seward is, and always has been, my home. Sad to say, it is headed in a direction that saddens me more each year. /�at%i 9au4 Hello, I'm writing to express my disagreement with Resolution 2025-27. I am against the properties listed being rezoned from RR to R3. Thank you, Johnny Provost City of Seward Planning and Zoning Commission RE: September 2, 2025 Meeting, Resolution 2025-027 To Whom It May Concern: We have lived in our home for over 50 years and enjoy the quiet and peaceful area. When we first moved into our home at , all the lots were an "acre" or more. Some of the Forest Acres lots have been divided into 2-4 lots and single-family houses have been placed on these lots. They are not in close proximity to our home. We are opposed to the rezoning of these seven lots for multi -family, townhouses or condos. We don't want our neighborhood to become a housing development. Some of our concerns for this rezoning would take away the neighborhood feel for our home, have the streets to become busy with traffic and we have safety issues with so many new residences. Our preference would be to keep the zoning as it currently listed, Rural Residential. Loyd and Betty Welch Dear Planning and Zoning Commissioner's, This is Tommy Tressler and I live at . The house I live in today I was raised in with my family. My dad built it in 1954,71 years ago. I have owned two homes on Birch Street. Alongside my siblings, my children, and grandchildren have grown up on this street. I oppose the rezoning of the seven lots on Spruce and Birch. If this gets approved,' hope the next single-family homes/lots to go up for rezoning from R1 to R3 are the homes/lots located on: First Avenue, Second Avenue,Forth Avenue, Sixth Avenue, and Jesse Lee Dr. Opening up those neighborhoods to future multifamily unit development. Thank you. Sincerely, Tommy Tressler