Parking debate divides city on Sunset apartments

Janet Imrick

Randolph Hub

ASHEBORO – Parking spaces spurred a long and at time contentious debate for the Asheboro City Council, leading to one split vote for an apartment project on Sunset Avenue and discussion about how the city should handle future building and "growing pains."

Assistant City Manager Trevor Nuttall presented four rezoning requests at the Sept. 5 meeting. Two passed without issue, but council members questioned whether limited parking for the other two could lead to clogged neighboring streets.

Adequate apartment parking

Most of the contention came from the request to rezone 801 and 817 Sunset Ave. The proposal for a 52-unit apartment building with 83 parking spaces was a sticking point for the council. City ordinance requires 107 spaces.

Nash Duggins with Baybuilt Properties, LLC, asked to rezone the land as OA6 (CZ) Conditional Zoning Office-Apartment. The single three-story building would have one- and two-bedroom units.

Nuttall said the planning board came out against request, even after the builder updated the plans to increase setbacks and to add an underground stormwater control device to mitigate 10-year storm runoff.

Duggins said he used Sunset Place across the street as a comparison, since he helped build the complex for Wynnefield Forward, LLC. He said he has never seen any problems with its 76 parking places for its 2-3 bedroom units.

Mayor David Smith argued that housing for low-to-middle income families and senior citizens cannot easily compare to a new market rate project, which is more likely to attract tenants with vehicles.

Summey Engineering, which drew up the preliminary construction plan, looked at similar developments and said this follows other cities' rules for 1.25 spaces per one-bedroom unit and 1.5 spaces per two-bedroom. Council member Eddie Burks mentioned that cities like Greensboro and High Point have more public transit, reducing the need for private vehicle ownership.

Duggins said allocated or assigned parking is on the table. He said, "We would try to manage and would manage how many get rented, and how many parking spots get taken up during that time. If a renter comes, and they've got one or they've got two, we could keep up with that allocation."

Smith said, "What I've spent the last 28 years trying to do is try to make it the best it can be. That we don't approve things we know will be a problem or that we don't invite a problem. But I don't have a vote, so you don't have to care what I think."

During public comment, Nicole Patino spoke on behalf of Nicholas Duggins, a resident of Lewis Street. She said he has concerns about the apartment property backing up against his home and the safety implications if people park on the street along South Cherry Street. She said, "Our biggest concern is a house burns down because the fire truck can't get through, because it can't navigate 27 additional cars."

Retired Community Development Director Reynolds Neely spoke against the rezoning request. "It is too intense for the property it's sitting on," he said.

Realtor H.R. Gallimore spoke in favor of the request. He said, "Those calculations work in high-density Center City Areas. If we want to be recognized as a coming community, then some of those regulations we're going to have to tweak, to get up to speed."

Mayor Pro Tem Walker Moffitt said this is a challenging property to work with. "I don't know if I agree with you, or if I agree with you; I don't even agree with me," he said. "But I've built enough of this kind of stuff. I know how many units it takes to pay for that stormwater."

Councilman Bill McCaskill acknowledged the need for something to replace the old church and fellowship buildings currently there. "That property is an eyesore now," he said. "But I just think this is too many houses for this property, too many residents for this property."

Councilman Joseph Trogdon, Jr. brought his decision down to the discrepancy in the ordinance. "We can debate the merit of the ordinance," he said. "If we want to address that later, that's fine. But based on our current ordinance, you're not talking about three or four spaces. I could do that. You're talking about 24 spaces."

Council members Trogdon, McCaskill and Kelly Heath voted against. Moffitt, Burks, Clark Bell and Charles Swiers voted for, approving the rezoning by one vote.

Outdoor restaurant seating

Parking also came up during a rezoning request for 841 Cross Street, where restauranteur Raul Muñoz wishes to build a gazebo at Perfect Portions to hold up to 28 people.

Muñoz and his daughter Jackie explained it has historically been a walk-up restaurant, and they want people to have a space to sit down without a wait staff. Jackie Muñoz said they heard many requests to keep serving food on Cross Street while they focused on staffing Taco Loco Cantina on Sunset Avenue.

The planning board noted their parking lot across the street was in bad condition. The Muñozes agreed to fix up the lot with 11 marked parking spaces.

Trogdon and McCaskill said they worried 11 spaces was not enough, and spillover on-street parking might affect Presnell and Loach Streets. Nuttall said the planning board gave an allowance so the restaurant can expand parking without going back to the council for approval.

The vote passed unanimously.

Other rezonings

The other two rezonings passed without debate. 

— Developer Brian Lucas asked to rezone 208 Pineview St. and incorporate the back portions of 307-A and 207-B Quaker Drive to make it R7.5 Medium-Density Residential. He said the plot could be used for a future duplex.

— The YMCA got approval for an amended B2 (CZ) General Commercial Conditional Zoning. Executive Director Patrick O'Hara outlined his plans for replacing an outdoor soccer field with an indoor facility on the western side of 343 Highway 42 North.