Two proposed housing developments could bring up to 550 homes to Greenwood over the next decade if approved.
Arizona-based Taylor Morrison is proposing the construction of Aviation Acres, a residential subdivision of up to 415 homes of various types. This subdivision, if a zone map change is approved, would be located on about 108.7 acres between the Northern Park neighborhood and Indy South Greenwood Airport, on some of the last vacant farmland in this area of the city.
Virginia-based Ryan Homes is proposing to build Leatherwood Trails, an up to 135-home subdivision on 80.9 acres of land at the southwest corner of East County Line Road and North Five Points Road. This request, which is for an annexation and zone map change, also features a commercial area on the northwest corner of the property, north of Grubbs Ditch and south of County Line Road.
The Taylor Morrison project was heard by both the Greenwood Board of Zoning Appeals and the Advisory Plan Commission Monday night, receiving a continuance from the former and a favorable recommendation from the latter, which will be sent to the city council. The Ryan Homes project received a favorable recommendation from the commission as well, which will be forwarded to the city council.
Aviation Acres
The Taylor Morrison development is a unique shape, consisting mostly of the northwest to west sections of the vacant land west of the airport. It also has some “serious development challenges,” including topography and the flood plain, said Eric Prime, an attorney representing Taylor Morrison.
There would be four distinct living areas consisting of four housing types: Simplicity, consisting of 158 units, Cornerstone, consisting of 67 units, Edge, consisting of 60 units and Townhomes, consisting of 130 units.
Taylor Morrison asked for 14 variances because of the development challenges and the plans for the products offered. The developer agreed to withdraw one variance that city staff was against, leaving only 13.
But four members of the Board of Zoning Appeals able to vote on the project — as member Ken Knartzer left the room due to a conflict of interest — opted to continue approval of the variances to the board’s Nov. 13 meeting. This was partially because the plan commission, which met the hour following the BZA, had not yet weighed in on the proposal.
Dozens of residents attended the public hearings for the project before both boards on Monday, with most expressing concern about the quality of the homes, along with the effects on Greenwood Community Schools and nearby areas.
Resident Dennis Klutzke echoed the thoughts of many residents who spoke: they knew housing would one day come to the land, but were concerned about the products being proposed and the density.
“We did not expect it to be quite so saturated. The whole plan here is to put as many houses as possible in this plot of land,” Klutzke said.
Klutzke expressed concern about public safety, saying the closeness of the homes could increase the risk of fires and explosions. He also questioned the quality of the homes, saying that online comments he had seen called the brand “cheap.”
Later in the hearing, Prime responded to these comments by revealing the price points for the homes. The lowest starting price point would be $275,000 for the Townhomes, and the highest would be $400,000 for the Edge series, Prime said.
Specifically addressing variance for reduced lot sizes, resident Ben Guillaum said the city’s building codes were put in place for a reason.
“Why have a unified building code that everyone else must submit to and then allow these reduced lots?” Gillian said.
Other residents expressed concerns about traffic and how people would get out of the new neighborhood. Airport Parkway would be extended south, but would not connect to the southern disconnected segment. There are two connections to two nearby neighborhoods.
While it’s “hard to talk about traffic flow” at the current stage, a southern connection is expected once the family that owns the land sells the rest of it, Prime said.
Laurie Gordon, another resident, brought up concerns about Greenwood schools at both meetings and whether the district could handle the number of students. Prime later said that Greenwood schools had been consulted, that the district had no position on the development and that there was room to grow at Northeast Elementary. The build-out for the project would be up to seven years, meaning students would be “rolled in,” Prime said.
Prime also later addressed comments from residents questioning why an out-of-county developer was doing the project. While Taylor Morrison is not locally based, the homes will be built by Pyatt Builders, an Indiana company acquired by Taylor Morrison, he said.
Among the questions asked by BZA member Chris Mull was why the developer asked for lot size reductions, along with the setback changes.
“It varies by the type of product, but some of those lot sizes were to have more homes,” Prime responded.
Residents also expressed concerns about flooding, which already happens, and whether natural barriers would be constructed between the existing neighborhoods and the development. Prime said that once built, the project will have detention and retention areas that will convert off-site drainage to on-site drainage. This is expected to improve the drainage of the area, he said.
Planning Director Gabe Nelson addressed the comment regarding natural barriers, saying it is not normal practice to put buffering between residential neighborhoods.
Plan commission members debated the project heavily before rendering their recommendation. Member Michael Probst initially admonished the developer for the staff report on the plan lacking enough detail, however, Nelson said part of this was because of city planning staff and that the developer did submit a concept plan and renderings.
Josh King, who is a member of both the BZA and the plan commission, was concerned about the ability of police and fire to get into the area emergencies.
“It’s going to take [Stations] 94, 91 a lot of time to wander their way back there — time they don’t really have,” King said.
As for stormwater, City Engineer Mark St. John said he couldn’t speak to the specific issues brought up by residents but the neighboring Northern Park subdivision does not have any detention in place. He also added that, for traffic purposes, the residential zoning would be less intensive than the current zoning of Airport Commercial.
A traffic study from the developer is also underway, Prime said.
The plan commission ultimately voted 7-2 to issue a favorable recommendation, with Probst and King being against it.
Leatherwood Trails
The Ryan Homes project would consist of 135 traditional single-family homes. There would be 2.1 lots per acre, said Andy Buroker, an attorney representing Ryan Homes.
Ryan Homes is not new to Johnson County. They are responsible for the Timbergate project in Edinburgh, along with Briar Creek Estates and Villas in Whiteland, according to their website.
Homes in Leatherwood Trails would range from 2 to 3,000 square feet and have an average sales price in the mid-$400,000s, Buroker said.
All of the homes would be built to the southeast of Grubbs Ditch, which divides the property. The remaining northern area would be designed for neighborhood commercial — small restaurants and stores, as examples — which is in line with the city’s new comprehensive plan.
As part of Leatherwood Trails, Ryan Homes has agreed to several commitments, including building an east-west road, adding trails and not using vinyl siding. Clark-Pleasant Community Schools, the school district for the area, has also not expressed opposition to the project, Buroker said.
There were not as many members of the public in attendance for the public hearing on this project, with only three speaking during the hearing.
John Hakes, a Greenwood farmer who has long expressed concerns about the drainage issues on Grubbs Ditch and its impact on his farmland, brought up his drainage concerns during the hearing. He’s repeatedly seen projects come in, get approved and subsequently change the drainage, he said.
Hake’s not against progress, he said, but he would like for something to be done about the drainage issues sooner rather than later. He’s talked with the county about the legal drain, which is the responsibility of the Johnson County Surveyor, but work will likely not happen any time soon, he said.
Buroker, along with Ryan Homes’ contracted engineer, said they are aware of the drainage issues and plan to pay attention to it.
Sam Harley, who lives on the Indianapolis side of County Line Road, expressed concern about the plans for commercial development on the north side of the property, which he said would be in front of six houses. People could drive about two miles to get to the commercial stores they need to, and plans for commercial in this area would put more traffic in an already heavily trafficked area, he said.
“If we wanted to not drive cars, we would move to downtown Indianapolis, downtown Greenwood,” Harley said.
Harley also expressed concern about the pricing of the homes, which could be unaffordable for people, he said.
Buroker said with the development on the east side of Interstate 65 on both sides of the county line, there’s a need for this type of housing. The city has also made it a goal to have amenities people could walk to on the east side of I-65 as well, he said.
Nelson told the commission he didn’t think “it was fair” to remonstrate against a commercial use being located within walking distance and to also complain about traffic. Having people drive a distance across I-65 to get to goods and services they need would stress city roads, whereas having walkability would avoid congesting the roads, he said.
Commission member Charrie Stambaugh said she was not opposed to the commercial area, saying it reminded her of the Chicago’s Pizza located in the small strip mall near Worthsville and Sheek roads. Traffic did get worse in the area over time, but it led to the road being widened, she said.
The commission ultimately voted to give an unanimous 9-0 favorable recommendation to the city council.
