DNA News and Notes

Prepared by Mike Cochran

Neighbors Win Hinkle Dr. Zoning Case!

Last week, neighbors North of Denton Center successfully defeated a zoning proposal on Hinkle Dr. that would have dramatically increased the density on an undeveloped parcel of land adjacent to North Lakes Park. Although they won at P the final decision will be made by the City Council. The P victory gives them a greater advantage going into the Council meeting. Not only is it a psychological boost for the neighborhood, for the Council to overrule a P vote requires a super-majority of at least 6 votes.

Tree Trimming Service Warning

The contract tree-trimmers are out hacking away at some of our beautiful tees. Some Mimosa St. neighbors complaints have come too late. Their Oak trees have been injured and Asplundh, the tree trimming contractor, has seemed less than sympathetic to the concerns of the neighbors. According to one resident, they have a new policy to cut back 5-years of growth with this trimming cycle. Arborists know that summer is not the best time to cut trees because it is in their growth period. The City said that the Asplundh is too busy to be able to do all their trimming in the season in which it is better for the trees. They could however find a company, or companies willing to do it right. Obviously if the City is serious about tree preservation (and the jury is still out on that one), they should insist that the necessary tree trimming near power lines be done with sympathy and according to professional standards which discourage drastic cutting in hot weather.

If you have trees that are near power lines I suggest you call the City to find out when they will be working in your neighborhood. You really need to be vigilant in this because they work fast and it could be done wrong before you are aware that it is happening.

Tree Ordinance Meeting - Thursday, July 1st 10:00 am

The Council Tree Ordinance Subcommittee will be meeting this Thursday at 10:00 am in the City Council Work Room to go over the latest version of the ordinance. This may actually be winding down and so if you want the opportunity to critique the ordinance before it is released, you should try to attend.

TWU Proceeds with Plans for Apartments in Green Space

The Neighbors of TWU are still very active in their attempts to discourage TWU from building apartments in the Locust St. park. The group has been holding vigils on Saturdays and has some plans for future public awareness events. You can follow their progress and voice support at their excellent website http://www.neighborsoftwu.org/

If I may editorialize on this for a moment: TWU has the absolute right to do what they want to with their land. No one questions that authority. They have all the power and do not have to listen to puny neighborhood groups or obey irritating zoning laws. That being the case, they have chosen to act like a caricature of a big lumbering, slightly out of touch, Eastern European bureaucracy. They could have been magnanimous, even generous but that did not happen. The neighbors wanted to see the plans but that request was refused. The neighbors filed an Open Records request to see the plans, and were told that it would cost them $1,500. The neighbors have some legitimate questions and they have only been stonewalled. If TWU had handled this case with any sensitivity, they could have had a group of good neighbors, who remained friends. That opportunity seems to have been squandered, and that is a pity.

City Hazardous Disaster Survey

The City has sent this email note out to a select group to solicit their opinion about hazardous disasters. I am taking the liberty of passing this on to our membership. You might take a moment to look at the survey and respond. It is essentially a "Fear Index" and will give valuable insight into what Denton citizens are most afraid of. Terrorism or poor air quality? Name your poison.

Good Morning,

The City of Denton is writing a Hazard Mitigation Action Plan as part of an overall disaster mitigation plan. Staff has divided the city into six sectors and identified a Mitigation Action Team to identify hazards specific to each of the sectors. The Team set up this survey to get your input to what YOU think the City should concentrate on as well as to help us plan for disasters that could impact the community. If you live in the City of Denton we would appreciate it if you would take a few minutes to answer the questions on the following web site.

http://www.cityofdenton.com/pages/mygovdeptspubsafetyemergencyprepsurvey.cfm

Please call me if you have any questions. Thank you for your assistance. The easiest way to accomplish the task would be to ask your neighbors to go to our web site to fill out the survey. However, I have attached the documents in case you want to make hard copies. Please call or Email me if you have further questions.

John Hudson
Emergency Management Program Manager
City of Denton
940-349-8836

Tree Preservation Ordinance

After a year of discussions there is another draft of the Tree Preservation Ordinance available at the City website.
(http://www.cityofdenton.com/pages/treepreservatopm.cfm) In this latest draft they have made some improvements. They have reduced the size for a protected tree from 20" to 18" in diameter. This is still inadequate, but a move in the right direction. They have also removed the exclusive list of "quality trees" from the ordinance and now most types of healthy trees can be protected if large enough. These are improvements, but it could still be better. More on this later.

Infill Development Ordinance

As some of you may be aware, the City is proposing a new set of infill development regulations to make it easier to develop land and lots in the middle of the city. This is still in the discussion phase but it has some controversial components to it which the DNA needs to monitor.

Lowering standards and offering development incentives for developers in the inner city is exactly the wrong direction for the city to take. They are talking about relaxing sidewalk requirements, relaxing parking requirements, offering tax abatements and waiving impact fees.

This is about reducing the need for public hearings for infill development which reduces the level of public input. Almost everything they want to do is possible now, but you have to have public hearing to request variances. The public hearing is a time-honored custom and a fundamental element of a democratic system. It puts your neighbors on notice of what you are doing because it may affect their health, safety and welfare. Many infill tracts are close to existing neighborhoods and they need stronger protection, not weaker.

One of the reasons mentioned that infill land has not developed is "neighborhood opposition". Many of us in the DNA might consider this to be a good thing and any attempt to lessen the impact of concerned neighbors would be met with disapproval.

DNA Sec. Karen DeVinney wrote an excellent letter to the editor on this subject last week and I include it below.

April 6, 2004
Dear Editor, Denton Record Chronicle:

My neighborhood fought for almost 3 years to prevent a developer from building a high-density, 22-unit apartment complex in the middle of our single-family historical neighborhood. Just as we thought we'd won, we read that the City Council is considering relaxing zoning rules to encourage development of infill. The new policy is intended to "ease code regulations ­ including setbacks, buffers, and parking requirements ­ to help clear the path for developers to do infill projects" ("City Discussing Rules," DRC 4/4/04). What the policy would also do is allow developers to put in inappropriate projects without giving the neighbors any advance warning.

Our neighborhood was helped considerably in our fight by the public comment requirements for the Zoning Board of Adjustments, the Planning and Zoning Commission, and the City Council. At these public hearings we were able to present our arguments against the apartment complex, and the developer was allowed to present his in favor. It was a tiresome and exhausting process, but it was also the fairest way to judge between two diametrically opposed positions. By providing for blanket changes to code under the guise of encouraging development, the City Council would eliminate this process, disenfranchising the people who should matter most: the residents who actually live around the properties in question. It also calls into question the council's commitment to a truly democratic process.

Let the developers make their case for their projects that don't fit existing code in the open forum of a public hearing. The city will be better for it.

Sincerely,

Karen DeVinney

Denton Neighborhood Alliance - June 29, 2004