This design rendering by Archhall Architects shows the front and side views for a proposed apartment complex on State Road 135 in Greenwood.
Provided by the city of Greenwood
A proposed rezoning could bring a seven-building “luxury” apartment complex to State Road 135 in Greenwood.
Ohio-based Homestead Development is asking to rezone about 11.5 acres from residential large to residential multi-unit complex zoning to build an eight-building apartment complex with up to 192 units. The complex would be located in the 2100 to 2200 blocks of State Road 135, south of Demarree Road and north of Independence Village of Greenwood.
The Greenwood Advisory Plan Commission voted 8-0, with member Brian Walker absent, to give a favorable recommendation on the rezoning to the city council. The council could hear the proposal as soon as next month.
The complex is planned to feature two- and three-story buildings, detached garages, green space, a dog recreation area, a clubhouse with a fitness center, pool, grilling area and lounge. It will have one-bedroom and two-bedroom units ranging from about 720 to 1,050 square feet, according to city documents.
One-bedrooms will be priced between $1,300 to $1,400, while two-bedrooms will be over $2,000. There will be 345 total parking spaces and 32 garages available for residents, Tuohy said.
Homestead expects the residents at the complex, which Tuohy described as “luxury,” to be young professionals and active adults who want a nice place to live but don’t want to deal with yards and maintenance. Homestead is expected to spend $40 million on the project, he said.
Ahead of the hearing, Homestead spoke with City Council Member David Hopper, who asked them to place Flock license plate reader cameras at the development and to provide an apartment at a 50% reduced rental rate for a Greenwood Police Officer to live on site. Homestead agreed, and it was added as a commitment to the land’s rezoning, Tuohy said.
Nearby property owners expressed concern about the project, specifically drainage and light and noise pollution.
Nathan Knies, who lives to the north in Ashwood Condominiums, said there are many concerns in his neighborhood about flooding. Earlier on Monday, another resident had expressed concerns about drainage in the neighborhood during the Walker Farms rezone hearing.
The Ashwood residents have spent a “substantial amount of money” to put in a sea wall on a retention pond to help with flooding that affects neighborhood homes. A neighboring creek has back-flow issues as well, and Knies said that without a “good water study,” further drainage issues will cause substantial damage to their properties and require residents to spend additional money to maintain the quality and value of their homes.
Dye’s Walk Country Club is also concerned about the development’s potential effects on drainage. The club has already spent $500,000 on mitigation because of drainage issues caused by the widening of State Road 135 and development east of the golf course, said Jackie Haynes, president of the club’s board of members.
“It does continue to be a concern. We don’t have a way to take on more watershed without doing damage to our course,” Haynes said.
The club wants to make sure the drainage issued is studied correctly during the review process, she said.
Charlotte Gridley, whose property abuts the north end of the land, told the commission that the creek behind her home has gone from “puddles of water” to constantly flowing. It has flooded and eroded along the banks, causing trees to be lost. She’s even had to pay privately to have trees removed, she said.
“Drainage is a big thing because people might be compliant to what is necessary for that piece of property, but they don’t always seem to consider how it affects downstream and other properties,” Gridley said.
Tuohy later told the commission drainage is “very important,” and that one of the requirements of developing the site is to make sure drainage runoff rates are better than what they were before.
Light and noise pollution were other concerns of Gridley’s. She can see lights and hear noise from nearby apartments and senior living developments despite the existing tree line and fields.
Gridley asked if the two proposed apartment buildings on the north end of the property could be lowered from three to two stories, along with adding a landscaping buffer. Tuohy later said the developer would agree to lower these two buildings to two stories, dropping the number of units by 12 to 180.
Mark Buck, who lives to the west in El Dorado, said the density of the units would be too much for the area and expressed concern about a perceived lack of green space. He also said the complex could make traffic in the area worse.
The property has good access in terms of road connections, and a traffic study is planned. If the study shows that the roads can’t handle the complex, the project probably would not be approved by the city, Tuohy said.
Residents were still concerned, however. Knies asked the developer to consider lowering a planned building on State Road 135 to two stories, and Buck asked the commission to reject the rezoning request.
Patricia Garry, another El Dorado resident, told the commission she felt the area was being “taken over” by multi-family developments — something that wouldn’t stop unless someone acted. Two-story apartment buildings might be better than three stories, but people would keep selling their homes in the area because they don’t want to live there anymore and their homes won’t be worth as much, she alleged.
“We want the city to grow but not grow in a way that is detrimental to the community,” Garry said.
Scott Setser, a former White River Township firefighter, had concerns about the entrance being too small for fire engines. He also was concerned about how the extra population from the complex would tax both White River Township Fire and law enforcement more. He asked the board to look at it closely.
During their deliberations, the commission discussed the drainage and landscaping concerns as well. Planning Director Gabe Nelson said they are very early in the process, but the development has to meet the city’s water standards. This includes not discharging more water post-development than the land is doing now, he said.
As for landscaping, the city would require a 20-foot buffer yard between the proposed complex and the homes to the north. They would also require certain numbers and types of trees per 100 feet, Nelson said.
Homestead could ask for landscaping waivers, but Nelson wouldn’t recommend them lowering the amount of landscaping. They could even add more trees than required, he said.
