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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLetter #058 Cindy Rommeney Shestak, Joe From:Cindy Rommeney <rommeney@sbcglobal.net> Sent:Monday, July 13, 2020 1:38 PM To:Shestak, Joe Subject:Saddle Creek proposed changes Follow Up Flag:Follow up Flag Status:Completed **** This is an EXTERNAL email. Please exercise caution and Do Not open attachments or click links from unknown senders or unexpected email. **** Good afternoon! I am writing to voice my concerns about the proposed development north of Saddle Creek and the use of roads within Saddle Creek for this new development. I am opposed to the elimination of the free space in Beaument street and making this a road connectiog to the new subdivision. First of all, The common green space is maintained by Saddle Creek and has been used by Saddle Creek children for over 15 years. Residents and children play football, soccer, and tag in the green space as it is large enough to have multiple families play games. It’s a safe place for the children to get outside and play their favorite sports. If this is converted to a road, children will not have a place to play locally and will stay inside more. With the decrease in green space in Carmel, this area should be preserved. Secondly, The volume of traffic from the high-density PUD (265 to 285 lots on the 56.5 acres) through Beaument Blvd will be a safety hazard for the children and adults in the Saddle Creek Community. This will become a key entry and exit for people living in Ambleside PUD commuting south, causing excessive traffic. I would like to see traffic studies done during Non-covid timeframe (prior to March 2020) to show how traffic would be affected. Also, can you provide any examples of other neighborhoods that use a road through another neighborhood and how that has affected traffic. Having access from 146th should be fine for this new neighborhood. If this is a concern, then that means to me that the amount of houses being built in the new neighborhood would be too many if an entrance from 146th street could not support it. Removing the beautiful natural trees to allow for the road will eliminate the privacy Saddle Creek homeowners enjoy today. This will be a significant change in privacy for current homeowners. Eliminating the mature trees will be a significant loss to Carmel green cover. I propose that for every mature tree removed, the city replants a mature tree around the pond north of mustang chase drive. Again, preserving green space areas would only help to increase value of the neighborhood. When it rains, the water from Saddle Creek Pond overflows on the surface and runs down to the next pond. If we convert the green space to a paved road, this will make it harder for the water to get absorbed and will lead to flooding as the road will block the natural flow of the water. This will flood Saddle Creek roads and homes. The new Ambleside PUD does not have any amenities for their future residents (no community pool, tennis courts, basketball court, or children’s play area). There is not enough green space, ponds or walking trails for the number of residential units (265 to 285). The Ambleside residents will be forced to utilize Saddle Creek amenities that we, as Saddle Creek residents, cherish and help maintain. This is unacceptable unless they will pay a portion of our HOA fees. There will be a significant decrease in property value from the construction of the road to lower-valued, high-density units including single-family homes and townhomes. Therefore, Ambleside PUD development is a new independent community and not an extension of our Saddle Creek community. As such, it should have its own entrance, amenities, and green area. Maintaining each community as its own entity (entrances, facilities, and amenities) is essential to negate any false impression for a new home buyer. 1 Our current 4 entrances for Saddle Creek North are being utilized by ~328 units (x 2 cars) and adding a high density 285 unit (x 2 cars) community will impose a high-volume traffic hazard to the two entrances, Beaument Blvd and Megan Dr. I am opposed to the number of houses proposed by the developer and the use of the roads in Saddle Creek to access this new development. In summary, my questions: 1. Are there any traffic studies of current communities in Carmel similar to the proposed changes for Beaument and Megan Drive? These studies would need to be outside the time of Covid when most people were not work from home. 2. What measures are you taking to ensure privacy for saddle creek residents if trees are removed? 3. Can the current density plan for the new development be changed in order to have less housing? 4. Beaument street has never been plowed by the city in the winter, so who owns the road? 5. Has there been any studies to determine where the bald eagles reside. There are 2 that we see in the neighborhood. Can there be anything done to preserve their habitat if they reside in the area around Saddle Creek. Thanks! Cindy Rommeney 2