…a laughable complaint as it is - do these people seriously think 12 stories vs 30 is going to make any difference to their “view”? A 12-story building is going to block whatever view they claim to have already (oh Capital blvd and the Self Storage building, what a lovely sight!)
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I guess the best way around this is to rally to bake the higher density allowances into the zoning map, essentially bringing it together with the future land use/comprehensive plans. When is Raleigh due for its next UDO overhaul?
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Apparently that doesn’t even matter, according to this current Council.
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Like @jake just mentioned the council ignored all those criteria and still voted NO. Here is a quote from Mr. Melton above
" However, this rezoning request was consistent with the comprehensive plan, the future land use map, the urban form map, and the planning commission recommended approval unanimously (8-0)."
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Right, I understand that, but the reason this was put to a vote in the first place is because it required a rezoning, and the reason it required a rezoning is because the zoning maps are outdated compared to the comprehensive plan. Steps should be taken to correct this, and I’m trying to understand where in the process Raleigh is with that. In Durham, for example, the last UDO update was in 2006, and planning staff is preparing a complete rewrite of the UDO at the end of the year that will (I assume) aim to accomplish goals laid out in the comprehensive plan.
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Yeah I mean I’d love everything in the downtown grid or adjacent (that isn’t Boylan Heights or Oakwood) be zoned to 50 stories, and stop all this rezoning nonsense downtown. But good luck getting anything like that to pass. I know a more thoughtful approach could be taken, but that’s gonna be one hell of a drawn out fight.
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You’re right, that’s not a realistic proposal. What does seem more realistic would be zoning maps that are a closer reflection of the future land use/comprehensive plans, which I assume do take a thoughtful approach to transitions between low density and urban neighborhoods. I was hoping there was a regular review cycle to update the UDO, like every 10 to 15 years, but maybe that’s not the case.
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What happens when the wrong people show up at the polls……
Who counts as a neighbor? I want more dense development downtown because the sprawl is unsustainable. I don’t live within 500 ft of the property but it does affect me as a Raleigh resident. Don’t say “show up to the meeting” because you can’t reasonably expect someone to come for every rezoning. That’s what was wrong with the CAC system. It favors the opinions of the few over the many.
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I’m not sure if this is what you mean by “Who counts as a neighbor”, but you can absolutely speak in favor of a rezoning that you don’t live by.
In the full public hearing at City Council, there is a requirement that each side gets eight minutes for public comment. The Council has to do this public-comment-with-eight-minutes-per-side thing at least once - though in a subsequent hearing they can opt to skip public comment. (If you watch last night’s hearing, you’ll see there was a bit of back and forth between Harrison and Baldwin about whether to even have more comment.) The hearings are typically on Tuesday; you have to sign up by Monday the night before at https://raleighnc.gov/public-hearings-city-council and coordinate with the applicant to yield some of the eight minutes to you. The coordination is easy, as the applicant’s e-mail address is on the zoning application (easily gettable out of the Raleigh city website).
For committees, it’s pretty informal. You just have to convince the presiding officer that you have something meaningful to contribute. That’s not hard. I went to a committee meeting about this very case a few weeks ago, and the presiding officer (the mayor) just asked people to raise their hand. It was pretty informal.
As far as I know, the “500 ft” thing pertains only about who the developer is required to notify by mail when they begin the application process.
It’s obviously a huge time suck to attend a meeting and all that, but the time commitment aside, it’s very easy to get in and say your piece.
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I think we could flip Christina seat, we just have to figure it out.
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While it’s disappointing that the 30 story rezoning did not pass, 12 stories is still quite substantial. Hell, the entire city of Washington DC has no buildings taller than that. This will still be transformational for this part of downtown.
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It can still look good, but we miss out on all the goodies (like park funding) they were willing to trade for the rezoning.
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I think a lot of people over value skylines.
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I’m envisioning a cathedral-like lobby floor about 60 feet high as measured from the highest point on the property.
It would be sad to end up with the worst of DC and Atlanta - no iconic skyline or buildings combined with endless sprawling low-density suburbs with mediocre public transit (actually that’s basically just DC without the District).
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The worst example of this that I’ve experienced first hand is San Jose, CA.
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At least there is Smoky Hollow Phase 3, which already has approved zoning for 40 stories…Hopefully, this one starts soon 
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The solution: VOTE at the next election cycle. 3 of these new council people are clueless. 2 apparently don’t or haven’t had a real job in years…why would we want them making decisions that impact the City’s economic interests?
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