UPDATE: City Hiring Professional Facilitator to Moderate 315 W. Ponce Discussions
Decatur Metro | September 17, 2008 | 12:07 pmThis is an update to yesterday’s post regarding the city commission’s plans to rekindle conversations between the neighborhood and the 315 W. Ponce developer.
While the city commission’s original agenda called for the creation of a committee to hold talks between the two groups, it looks like instead, the commission has settled on hiring a professional facilitator to attempt the uneviable task of bringing the two groups to consensus.
“On a motion by Mayor pro tem Baskett, second by Commissioner Kemp, and all voting “aye”, the City Manager was authorized to engage the services of a facilitator at a reasonable cost for two meetings to continue conversations between the community and the developer regarding proposals for the redevelopment of 315 West Ponce de Leon Avenue.”
Didn’t the City already hire Urban Collage? They attended all of the meetings the neighborhood had with the developers, but I’m still not sure exactly what their role was. I thought that their role was to facilitate the conversations, but I guess I was wrong.
You’re kidding? It is April first right. Oh I forgot maybe you can get an M.F. degree from Devry. You know Master of Facilitation. This is one of the funniest things I’ve ever heard. ROFLMAO
I don’t get it. Why is that funny?
Hey, David. I think you accidentally hit SUBMIT before typing your alternate plan for getting all these clowns on the same page. And I’m sure it’s a really good one that demonstrates how arbitration is so silly, right? Otherwise, what’s funny?
Wait a minute I’ve got to look up facilitator in the yellow pages…hmmm, nothing. Just where do you get a facilitator? Is there like a Manpower for civil servants? Can I run by the home depot? Could I hire one of my friends who are lawyers and are already on my side but have no formal connection to me to arbitrate something I want already.
I think if the city gets a facilitator then the homeowners get one too. Maybe a hot oil facilitator match in front of 315.
Gee, if you work for somebody whose side will you be on?
Wow, pretty cynical, David. Do you think the city is going to stipulate in the contract how the facilitation is going to turn-out, or will it be done with a wink and a handshake? Most professionals, particularly those that have experience in fascilitation have ethical standards. Anyone who displays bias is not going to have much of a future.
I think if the city gets a facilitator then the homeowners get one too.
I’m sure that if the neighbors wanted to pay for a facilitator out of their own pockets, I’m sure they would have. Instead, the city, the taxpayers of all of the city, are paying for one.
Who would you rather pay for the facilitator, the developers? No one would be claming bias then, would they?
Not to mention that the city isn’t even one of the two parties that need to negotiate. This is a dispute between the neighborhood and the developer. The city’s only dog in the fight is that our Strategic Plan calls for infill development on that parcel. In case anyone forgot, we pay Lyn Menne’s salary in part to make sure it happens.
So, what, now you’re ticked off because city employees are doing their jobs?
It’s already a given that something will be built there eventually, so how does the city footing the bill for two sides to work things out have anything to do with tweaking the outcome?
I shan’t belabor the obvious. The city wants this to go through no matter what, Nuff said.
David, we need to mark this down as an auspicious day because, for once, I believe we are in total agreement! The only difference now is that you view that reality as a dereliction of duty and I see it as dedicated leadership carrying through on our long-held goals.
On that point, I have to assume we may continue to disagree… ;^)
I think the current economic environment may cause our esteemed leaders to rethink their long held goals and come around to a very slow or no growth policy. Especially when there’s no money. Maybe we should change Lynn’s title to downtown preservation director instead of development director.
These boom and bust cycles don’t seem to be working very well any more. How solvent is Decatur First right now? I don’t know just wondering.
And hey, where’s my bailout? If they’ll bail out the brokers and insurance agencies why not me? I’d cost them a lot less money.
I’m just waiting for the day when China starts reopening our factories because the labor is so much cheaper here.
Government is always on the side with the most money. It doesn’t make them right.
Sorry I’m rambling but if you don’t think things are going to change and change alot after the financial events of the last week you haven’t been paying attention. The city needs to take a much harder look at the finances of any developer that wants a variance in order to make their project work.
If this dev didn’t need a variance they’d have already broken ground. Maybe they shouldn’t think that they’ll get a pass from the city just because they want to build something. Maybe the city shouldn’t promise things they can’t deliver. Maybe they should imagine that the plan is outdated and not in keeping with the needs of today. It’s not written in stone.
The people that elect our esteemed dedicated leaders are the those people in the neighborhood not the developers who want to build there. Lets remember that and if they keep trying to thwart the will of the people that elected them they will soon be esteemed private citizens again. Albeit with good jobs with developers or lobbying firms.
Peace out
Excited about the economic downturn, David?
Thanks for bringing to light that the will of the Decatur people is to blindly stifle growth. I’d love to see the polling data to support that, since it seems to be in opposition to the 80% of people that agree with the overall direction that Decatur is taking in the 2008 citizen survey. You’re unfairly saying that all the people that oppose 315 W. Ponce, also oppose any sort of mid-rise development in downtown. While I’m sure there’s a contingent of folks that take this extreme view , I don’t think they’re even a majority of the opposition, let alone represent the “will of the people”. We’ll see if I’m right in the very near future.
As far as I can see, your no growth proposition takes Decatur down a dreary road regardless of the health of the local economy. If the economy turns around and we adopt “no growth”, home prices and taxes go even higher due to to high demand and less inventory…completing our conversion to Druid Hills 2.0. If the local economy sours and growth stops all over Atlanta, enjoy the deterioration of city services and watch the selection of shops and restaurants dry up.
Decatur can’t stay the way it is, regardless of what sort of restrictions you put on development. Anyone that thinks that is the one that isn’t paying attention.
Scott, you said “The city’s only dog in the fight is that our Strategic Plan calls for infill development on that parcel.”
Can you tell us what part of the Plan says that? I’ve looked at the Strategic Plan some online and I can’t find where it says that 315 site should be infill high-density residential. They do talk about residential in other commercial areas. Is there some other planning document that calls for this at 315?
Hey, G.G. You won’t find it listed by address, if that’s what you mean. Because the plan requires the participation of the private sector (which the city doesn’t control), the only parcels listed specifically in the plan are those in which the property owner had expressed a desire to be included at the time the plan was prepared.
What the plan does do, which is relevant in this situation, is define the specific boundaries of the downtown growth district, identify where gaps in pedestrian continuity exist (that need to be filled in with street-level uses), and indicate a preference for growth that displaces surface parking rather than existing buildings of merit. Each of those three criteria apply here.
The plan also includes requirements for stepping down mass in areas adjacent to residential, as well as an expectation that downtown development would typically average around 5 stories.
There is nothing in the plan that specifically calls for high-density residential here. That is the choice of the property owner and most assuredly one of the points that needs to be negotiated with the adjacent neighbors.
It’s clear that the city is in favor of development occurring at 315 (and other surface parking sites in the DBD) simply as a matter of policy. That said, though, other than requiring retail along W Ponce and a step downs to the residential, there are many, many variables in what might be built. Those are the variable that need to be worked out between the developer and the neighborhood which is why, IMO, an arbitration process is important.
The nature of those remaining details, by and large, are inconsequential to the goals of the city, which is why I’ve said that there is nothing questionable in the city funding the process. They are looking to reach some particular goals. The absence of agreement between the developer and the neighbors presents a hurdle that needs to be cleared.
This thread has gotten completely off-topic and no longer serves any useful purpose, so some comments have been deleted and it’s being closed.
Also since David and Bill have again not steered clear of the insults, they’re future comments will be moderated before posting because I don’t have the bloody time to referee this stuff.