SPRINGFIELD– During the Springfield city council meeting on Sept. 15, city surveyor Jeremy Sherer earned unanimous council approval to designate city-owned land as surplus in the area South of Mount Vernon and along Linda Lane.
The city acquired a total of 34 acres in 2021 for $450,000. The land was purchased as part of the Jasper Trunk Sewer extension project and was needed for a compensatory wetland site in accordance with a Removal-Fill permit. According to Sherer, the city will hold onto 11.6 acres of the property for a compensatory wetland site and sell the remaining 23 acres.
The agenda from the Sept. 15 meeting reads, “The highest and best use for the land is for residential development, and staff recommend the property be sold on the open market for the highest price.”
The lot was appraised in April with a market value of $830,000, with the assumption that 15.2 acres can be redeveloped for housing. Part of the action request is that the city manager accept the highest offer.
Public testimony from the meeting brought safety concerns to the council’s attention if the land were to be sold and a new subdivision were to be built in the area.
Rene Ellis mentioned concerns about the protection of the wetlands and even brought a stick that a beaver had chewed, stating, “There’s a beaver dam out there.”
Robert Moore, who lives with his wife on Orchid Lane near Linda Lane, pointed out that the Jasper Meadows subdivision, with 147 homes, only has one entrance and exit for the neighborhood. Moore voiced concerns about the addition of more development and subdivisions, which would create more traffic, especially during an emergency.
“In the event of a fire, earthquake, or other catastrophe, dozens and dozens of vehicles would be trying to exit at the same time that emergency vehicles would be trying to enter,” Moore said. “As the resident who lives at the very south end of the subdivision, you may well understand the threat which this represents to me and my neighbors. Doesn’t require much to imagine the chaos that would ensue.”
Moore’s wife added to his statement, saying, “The only way in and out is at the north end. We feel very vulnerable, as do our neighbors. Despite a city regulation that there must be no more than 100 homes being served by one ingress and egress, we had 147 homes already,” she said. “We now learn that there are plans for another well, a sale, which would lead to more building, and more houses.”
Jeff Paschall, community development division director, along with Sherer, was asked to go before the council again to explain the entry and exit issues. He explained that when the subdivision of Jasper Meadows was proposed, it came under discretionary use and could meet specific criteria by suggesting different things.
“One of the criteria was secondary access or emergency access, and so the folks who spoke tonight are wrong,” Sherer said. “There is emergency egress, but it is strictly only for emergency ingress and egress, and so it will be either a bollard or gate and opened up in the case of an emergency. The biggest reason for that is that there is a planned intersection off Bob Straub. It’s farther to the south on the next property.”
He pointed out that “The action that Jeremy’s bringing before you is not a development application, it’s an action for the city to declare surplus. If whoever purchases it comes in, they’ll be held to our current code standards. They’ll have to provide access or a transportation network, as shown in our current transportation system plan,” Paschall said.
Councilor Moe chipped in, “I’m going to echo what all the other councils are saying. There’s a large block of land we need room to develop in the city for housing. But it’s large enough, it’s got to have two entrances and it’s essential, no matter what we do, that’s got to be part of the package,” he said.
