Do we have a date for our workshop on the UDO? Thanksgiving is early this
year and I often work on weekends (come to Lunchbox
Magic<http://www.cookforgood.com/blog/2012/10/8/good-habits-brown-bag-it…
Saturday!). Let's get this on the calendar so we can schedule around
it for maximum participation.
Thanks to Phil Poe for posting this clip of our last RCAC
meeting<http://raleighudo.com/blog/lack-educational-plan-citizens-concer…
.
For those who want to see the drawings I'm holding up, please look here:
Drawings showing many UDO regulations on a side and front views of one lot,
plus my "student party palace" showing what the regulations will allow:
http://raleighudo.com/blog/guides-and-example-how-far-can-you-go-udo-design…
Petition against the backyard cottages (at least for now and as currently
defined):
http://www.change.org/petitions/raleigh-city-council-reject-backyard-cottag…
City Council will begin talking about chapter 2, the main residential
chapter, on Monday.
Here is a News & Observer story abut the
UDO<http://www.midtownraleighnews.com/2012/09/25/17518/raleigh-moves-clo…
seems to have appeared in only some of the regional sections (I saw it
in the Midtown section). Matt Garfield accurately quoted my biggest
personal nightmare but didn't begin to address how bad this will be for the
city overall. Although my focus has been the backyard cottages, I'm deeply
concerned about the mixed-use zoning, the in-fill standards, and the new
quasi-judicial approval process.
I just got a request from a citizen about the approval process for a new
zoning case and realized with horror that I simply don't understand how
this process will work under the UDO.
The story ends with on his concerning note:
Planning director Mitchell Silver told the council that “even if we spend a
year going through this code, there will be innovative
individuals out
there.”
A better approach, Silver said, would be to put the code into action and
make improvements as needed.
I'm not asking for a UDO that legislates against innovation, but for one
that realistically protects neighborhoods and our city. Once someone has
built a nightmare next to your house, it's too late to go back and make
improvements. If we line Glenwood with strip malls or let landlords in
Southeast Raleigh slap up second houses in backyards, *it will be too late
to start the very long process of fixing something that we already know
needs to be fixed*.
Let's represent our neighborhoods by making sure we understand the UDO and
improve it as needed.
... Linda
Chair, Glenwood CAC