In a five-hour meeting Monday night, the Durham City Council considered two development plans that opponents said would place too much stress on already-crowded schools.
The council denied a request by development firm Olde South Homes for an 82-home subdivision in East Durham in a 5-7 vote, but approved the initial rezoning for a larger project on Ganyard Hill Farm in Southeast Durham by an 8-4 vote.
Both projects were recommended by city planning staff, but the seven-member joint City-County Zoning Committee had recommended denying both. Protest petitions against both were filed, but only the petition against Olde South Homes was found sufficient-meaning that the council needed 10 votes to pass that plan, compared to seven for the Ganyard Farms proposal.
Al Alphin, the attorney for Olde South Homes, said the firm's plan-which called for rezoning 23.14 acres to allow up to 82 homes, rather than 75-would help improve East Durham.
"East Durham needs this kind of development because it's an ownership-type thing, and by nature people owning property contribute more to the community," he said.
But neighborhood residents and Zoning Committee members opposed the project, saying it would place an undue burden on the neighborhood's infrastructure.
Steve Bocckino, a Zoning Committee member, cited the impact on local schools, which are already using portable trailers to house classrooms. Bocckino said 17 of Durham's 27 elementary schools are now over capacity.
"Facilities are overburdened," he said. "Some of those kids eat lunch at 10:15 in the morning. How would you like to eat lunch at 10:15?"
The developer estimated that the 82 homes would add an additional 32 students to the local schools.
The council ultimately chose not to defer the proposal but to reject it outright, in part because of concerns that the development would have been built in a 100-year flood plain.
The approved development, Ganyard Farms, would consist of about 140 single-family homes and about 120 townhomes, along with office space and a childcare center.
Several neighborhood residents, and Zoning Committee chair Jackie Brown, spoke in opposition to the development. Brown said the primarily residential development proposed would put too much burden on the community if corresponding commercial developments were not built.
But around 20 or 30 other citizens stood up in favor of the plan. Several council members said the plan was consistent with the city's long-term vision for the area.
A few council members suggested a moratorium on residential development until they could talk with the county government and the school board about the development's impact on schools.
But the council rejected a proposal to defer the decision for two weeks, saying that would not be enough time to deal with such a far-reaching issue.
"We can't hold this development hostage because of how we feel about school impact," said council member Angela Langley.
IN OTHER BUSINESS: About 40 city employees were present at the meeting as a silent protest of cutbacks in pay and benefits they feared might occur in response to Durham's budget deficits.
The council heard citizens' comments on a proposal to change the portion of Sunset Avenue between Pennsylvania Avenue and Broad Street into a one-way street, but took no action on the proposal.
Most neighborhood residents were in favor of the proposal, saying it would reduce traffic flow through the neighborhood and provide greater convenience and safety. According to a survey presented by proponents, 78 percent of the neighborhood supported the plan.
But some senior citizens said eliminating westbound traffic on the street would make it harder for emergency vehicles to arrive. Representatives of Centura Bank, located on the corner of Sunset and Guess Road, also opposed the proposal.
In a closed session two hours before the regular meeting, the council discussed the city manager selection process. Members instructed their search consultants to try to arrange interviews with the 11 applicants for a closed session March 17. About three would then be selected as finalists, Mayor Nick Tennyson said. The names and résumés of the 11 candidates will be publicly released March 14.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.