Tandi - thank you for starting this conversation - but it
fails to mention that there is also a policy buried in the IDO that allows
"unlimited building height" after 100 ft. from any residential
property line (including the street) in the MX-M and MX-H zones (which is the new zoning
designation for Nob Hill).
Including policies in this way is problematic as they are
not mentioned in the city presentations or the zoning maps that show old and
new zoning changes. Thus, the true building heights that are allowed are misrepresented
for zones that will allow "mixed use" (MX) which are prime
targets for higher buildings. The old C-2 (commercial only) zoning allowed
unlimited heights but the incentive of mixed commercial/residential was not
allowed for commercial zones.
Who knows what other policies like this are buried in this
huge document that is virtually impossible for the average citizen to read and
comprehend? The unwieldiness of a single document is why they switched to
sector plans in the first place!
That being said.,,,yes, the zoning code needs updating. I
support more density and I think some change would be very good for Nob Hill.
BUT many properties along Central need updating and some limits on building
heights would work better at accomplishing more property renovation than
allowing "unlimited heights" for some large building projects. In
addition, excessive building heights inflate the value of the property and
encourage destruction of historic architecture.
As I have said before, heights can easily go up in the future, but it is
near impossible to bring them back down.
My final comment about the IDO....
I attended the very first public meetings for the Comp Plan
and IDO. I have attended at least a dozen meetings since then and submitted
many comments. But, I don't think the current version of the IDO truly supports
the Comp Plan and I don't think public input from neighborhoods carries much
weight with this administration. I think it is fair to say that we would get a
better result if the IDO approval process is postponed until after the mayoral
election in November.” We don't want
urban renewal we want to blend the old and new in an integrative, creative ways that preserve the character of our neighborhoods!
Best,
Susan
From: Sara via Neighbors_nobhill-nm <neighbors_nobhill-nm@mailman.swcp.com>
To: Flora Silva <silva_f65@yahoo.com>
Cc: neighbors_nobhill-nm <neighbors_nobhill-nm@mailman.swcp.com>; Tandi Hufnagel <tandiwe76@gmail.com>
Sent: Monday, July 31, 2017 8:03 AM
Subject: Re: [Neighbors] Need your voice regarding building heights - please reply with input
Thank you Flora, I just sent an email to Pat Davis.
Sara Friederich
Sent from my iPad
Listed below are the email addresses to members of the LUPZ Committee as well as Sean Foran, Councilor Davis' right hand man:
Philip Dale has a very sane analysis of the building heights which acknowledges the need to increase the living space in Nob Hill. In general I find myself in agreement with his reasoning, though I believe both #2 and #3 are out of character, with #3 verging on the absurd for this neighborhood to call itself a "neighborhood".
Tony Hunt
Hermosa NE
I too am very grateful to Tandi for laying out the proposed changes so clearly, and making it easier for more of us to chime in. I’m probably in the (tiny)
minority here, but I am a bit more sympathetic to the changes, though not to their scale.
I think it is in the interest of both Albuquerque in general (avoiding sprawl, improving work-home transportation connections) and Nob Hill in particular (in
such a heavily retail-based neighborhood, we need more people *living* here, not just coming here for the bars and restaurants) to have somewhat increased population density. And it makes sense to concentrate it around the major transportation corridor.
But this is just too big a change, and ‘freezes’ a distinction between East Nob Hill and the rest of Nob Hill which is undesirable.
So I favor #1, and a reduced version of #2 (whatever the numbers would be to make the limit four stories), while opposing both aspects of #3.
Philip Dale
Hi neighbors,
I'm sure you've all seen the updates from Gary and others about the proposed changes in building heights in Nob Hill.
I wanted to summarize them because sometimes all the language in the codes can be hard to understand.
Here are three major changes that could dramatically change the streetscape in Nob Hill:
1. The first change is to raise the existing building height limit from 39' to 45'. That would include all blocks along Central in Nob Hill from Girard to Aliso.
2. The second change is to add an additional 20' to the height limit in the areas near ART stations. In Nob Hill that includes the stations at Bryn Mawr and Solano. This would raise the height limit from the proposed 45'
up to a 65' (a five story building). The increased height zone would include a block in either direction (East-West) from the station. So this would apply along Central from Aliso to Hermosa, and Richmond to Wellesley.
*Pat Davis, maybe you can comment - has the additional height has already been nixed for the Bryn Mawr station? In any case it is still being proposed for the Solano station zone.
3. The third change is to allow the additional 20' height within 660' of the Washington station. This would cover Morningside to Monroe. So the majority of East Nob Hill could be built up to five stories. Also, the proposal
includes another 12' for any "Workforce" projects for a grand total of 77' allowable building height! That's at least a six story building.
Here's what is needed: Please reply to this email with your feedback on these proposals before this coming Wednesday.
Also,
please tell our councilman Pat Davis what you think! His email is:
patdavis@cabq.gov. I think he reads these neighborhood emails too.
As our representative it's up to Pat to help make the final decisions for our neighborhood, and without your input he won't know what the neighborhood prefers.
This is easy, you don't need to go to any meetings, just reply to this email and/or email Pat. If you do feel strongly and wish to go to the meeting to add your voice, it will be August 16th in the evening. Please contact Gary Eyster
for more info at:
meyster1@comcast.net.
As I have written before, I think these building heights are completely out of character for Nob Hill. They do not fit the historic architecture or human-scale texture of the neighborhood, and they are unnecessary. The only people who
benefit are developers. Three stories is a good limit for any commercial development along Central. I do support increased density to help small local businesses survive, however it has to be done with respect for the existing neighborhood. Looking forward
to hearing your thoughts.
