July City Council Message
By: Mayor Gerri Harbison, Contact this Councilmember
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Thoughts about the Twin Lakes Easement
On June 20, 2007, the Montgomery City Council made a decision to approve a vehicular access easement for the development of 13 garden homes by Twin Lakes on 2.92 acres of property along Montgomery Road. This easement provided for the use of 0.028 acres (or approximately 1200 square feet) of property owned by the City and was necessary to properly and safely align the driveway for this residential development with the existing median cut in Montgomery Road across from Forestglen Drive.
This action came after nearly one year of hard work by the Montgomery Planning Commission, City Council members, city staff, Twin Lakes and, most importantly, our residents to design and redesign this project so as to provide a quality residential development with as little impact as possible to the residents of Montgomery.
During this process, the City listened to the concerns of the Forestglen residents and worked hard to explore other options for vehicular access to this site. Our ultimate goal was to consolidate all future vehicular access points to the 10 acres of undeveloped property along the east side of Montgomery Road to a single location away from the Forestglen Drive intersection. Such action would have been consistent with the sound access management principles that have existed in the City since the late 1980s when the current median system was installed.
Unfortunately, while this solution had the support of our City Council and Twin Lakes, the owner of the additional land that was necessary to make this concept work simply was not interested in selling his property. And, without his support, this long range goal of consolidated vehicular access was not an option that could be pursued for the Twin Lakes development alone as it required the cooperation of the adjacent property owners.
Once we found that this longer range approach was not feasible, the only remaining option was to determine whether or not to grant the easement to permit the vehicular access point for the 13- unit residential development. In reviewing this issue, professional traffic engineers determined the location to be safe, have limited impact on the existing traffic on Montgomery Road due to the small size of the development, and meet the standards for access management that have been in the City’s code for many years.
A final important point to be made about this approved access point is that it will enable the City to maintain the landscaped median along this section of Montgomery Road which has been a critical part of the City’s access management strategy as well as a key aesthetic “gem” along Montgomery Road for many years. The Council believed that the maintenance of this median, with only minor modifications, was of critical importance to Montgomery Road now, and into the future.
As you know, this decision came after months of heated debate from residents of the Forestglen subdivision as to the appropriateness of the development and safety of the access point for the proposed 13-unit residential development. The Forestglen citizens preferred another access point for this project that would have either required mandatory “UTurns” for travelers of Montgomery Road or the loss of approximately 250 feet of the existing landscaped median. These were options that, for safety, traffic control and aesthetic considerations our City Council simply could not approve.
As a result, the City Council weighed the pros and cons of this issue and made the decision that it felt best met the needs of our entire community. This was the approval of the use of 1200 square feet to permit the safe and appropriate alignment of a driveway to 13 residential units — a project that will be an attractive and desirable residential use for our community along Montgomery Road.
These issues are always difficult as the City tries to balance the interest of our citizens with the legal rights of the property owners to develop their property. Unfortunately, the City Council ultimately finds itself in the middle of these debates — a position that is sometimes uncomfortable as we too are citizens. This is a position that isn't always understood and often criticized by our citizens. However, we have been charged with the important responsibility of doing what is best for the community as a whole and in the end, we must evaluate all of the research in front of us, take a deep breath and make the tough decisions.