During the June 6 City Council meeting, developer Terramark Urban Homes provided City Council with a presentation on the patio home project.
The developer was seeking feedback from City Council before proceeding with a rezoning request to rezone the property from commercial to a planned unit development.
The project
According to plans submitted by the developer, the project will include 27 units, resident parking and a community space.
As of the meeting, the amenities of the community space have not been determined and will be expanded on as the project progresses, according to the developer.
The patio homes will also each have a distinct and different aesthetic appearance to avoid having each home in the community looking the same. Each home will have two floors with a total living square footage 1,562 square feet.
Due to concerns with guest parking, the developer explained each unit will have two spaces within the garage alongside two spaces for guest parking. Guest parking will also be available on an alley-type street within the site, providing an additional 11 parking spaces.
Meeting highlights
Feedback from City Council was mostly in favor of the development with a few concerns regarding traffic as well as the ability for waste management and emergency services to access the properties.
Council Member Phil Vaughan said he is in favor of a project of this type going in the city, but the developer needs to ensure that the traffic impact will be minimal to the adjacent streets.
“I think my main concern is the traffic on that corner, so whatever we can do to alleviate as few cars as possible on Athenian and not have that stop sign become a big cluster,” Vaughan said.
Council Member Paul Najarian said homes of this type are needed in the city to help fill a market the city does not cater to.
“Patio homes would be the same thing as garden homes, which are badly needed in Universal City,” Najarian said. “We don’t have enough of those.”
What’s next?
With council feedback, the developer can look into modifications to the property before going to the Universal City Planning and Zoning Commission.
Should the property owner decide to move forward, the next steps in the process include a preliminary plan presentation to the commission and City Council, followed by a final plan presentation to the commission and City Council. The governing bodies will vote for the rezoning of the property.
