HomeMy WebLinkAboutCorrespondence Doxtater Comments K ens i ng t on Place
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RECEIVED
habitat An cteuvuone.
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COMMENTS
TO THE
PLAN COMMISSION
AND THE
CITY COUNCIL
On the
WOODLAND TERRACE
Development Plan
From
Gary D. Doxtater
13559 Kensington Place
A Wildlife Friendly Neighborhood
Carmel, IN 46032
May 31,2011
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Author, Gary Doxtater, with his Wildlife Friendly Habitat Certification
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INTRODUCTION
To: Members of the Plan Commission and City Council
From: Gary D. Doxtater
I want to thank you for the opportunity to share my comments with you in the past, as
well as in the future on the proposed Woodland Terrace Development as it makes its way
through the application process. You w ill note that I have sent copies to both the Plan
Commission and the City Council as. I feel that it would be good information for both
bodies. This information is on the Woodland Terrace proposal, but the concepts are
applicable for just about any type of construction application that comes before your
review. I know that many of you are aware of my Wildlife and Natural Resource
background —this appreciation for our natural resources is one of the reasons we chose to
live in Kensington Place. I would like to summarize my comments and take you along
on a pictorial tour of our Certified Wildlife Friendly Neighborhood.
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QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL)
QOL is defined by each person's personal interests and priorities when determining
where they want to live. It is very important in Carmel as a selling point. Carmel's
website has over 59- references to Carmel's Quality of Life. Man, like all animals, has
habitat needs to survive: Food, Water, Cover and a Place to raise young. Kensington
Place critters (including us) just love where we live, but our QOL is being threatened
because of man's progress.
WILDLIFE
Wildlife is very important to all of us in Kensington Place. We have bird feeders, garden
ponds with fish, nesting boxes, and shrubbery for our wildlife. In 2005 Kensington Place
was recognized as the first Certified Wildlife Friendly Neighborhood in Indiana by the
Indiana Wildlife Federation. Every one of our townhomes has been certified. You may
recall that Carmel -Clay parks received a similar recognition last year as the first parks in
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Indiana to receive this Certification. The proposed construction, without doubt, will
impact the quality of our habitat, and soon, .when you drive past the deer crossing sign at
the ProMed entrance, you will say; where did the deer go Maybe we should take down
that sign
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Picture taken through sunroom window 20 feel away
WATER MANAGEMENT
The general site area has a very; complex physical characteristic. These considerations
must be studied and evaluated so as to reduce the impact of the proposed facility on the
adjacent propertieswithin the watershed: For these data,' what specific site data has
been collected on the geology, soils and ground .water. hydrology? Using these data,
what impact will the proposed facility have on,the local surface and ground water
on any adjacent properties, including ProMedi ;Kensington Place, Meadowlark Park
Lake and Meadowlark =Business Center?
The present plans include the use of both pervious and imperious surfaces. How will the
surface stormwater and groundwater be managed, and what will be the impact on
adjacent properties? This area, Meadowlark Park and Kensington Place, has had
flooding problems for many years. The watershed has continued to be affected with the
additions of ProMed and Meadowlark Business Center.'
The Carmel Engineering Department and Carmel -Clay Parks Department are well aware
of these problems. The City should not have to pay for damage to the Park trail. The
drainage design for this proposed facility must be carefully integrated to protect this
whole watershed.
The following two photographs show the severe erosion that occurs as a result of the
complex watershed running into Meadowlark Park Lake.
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I accompanied John Thomas, Carmel City Eng on a site vis on April 27, 2011
to look at the present storm water patterns from the Pro
Meadowlark Business
Center, Justus Development area, Kensington Place and Quinett properties, which all
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drain into the Meadowlark Park Lake. It had been raining, so we were able to see the true
surface runoff, which cannot be seen by simply looking at a topographic map. Our
conclusion was that there have been several physical changes in the upper watershed that
must be considered in any watershed analysis. It appears the Park Lake receives water
from ProMed, Meadowlark Business Center, Justus forestland, Kensington Place
retention pond, and Quinett surface water. We observed the drainage from the above
watershed areas as it drained into Meadowlark Park Lake. These cumulative waters have
caused severe erosion damages many times since the upper watershed has been
developed. The Carmel -Clay Parks and Recreation Department and the Carmel
Engineering Department are aware of this problem and the annual damage to the Park
trail path. They should require a detailed study of the complete watershed and report
before this project is reviewed. This area can only get worse!
On the east side of the Justus property we observed a "beehive" located on the down
slope of the TPA which "appears" to drain into the Meadowlark Park Lake. Another pipe
higher up in the TPA appears to be a "sneaky pipe" which drains surface water off the
Justus property into the Kensington retention pond. It is unknown when this pipe was
installed but it would have been in the late 1990's. The Kensington Place retention pond
is maxed out now (with 3 -4 more townhouses left to finish out the development) and
should not be taking waters from the Justus property. This is a serious problem. How
will this problem be addressed?
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Beehive located on Justus property- Kensington Place property line
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Sneaky pipe" at property line stake. Drainage comes from the right (Justus prop and
flows to the left into Kensington Place Dra retention pond.
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Kensingron Place retention pond flooding into resident's lawn after an average rain
OTHER WATER MANAGEMENT RELATED QUESTIONS
What is an Aqua Swirl, w it located, how mu ch does it run, and how
much noise does it make?
Will an IDEM Rule 5 or Storm Water Permit will be required? If so, I
would like to review those permits.
What is the purpose of the basement and how will it affect the area
hydrology
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TREES "A FOREST IN POUR BACKYARD',''
A FO R E ST
YOU .R BACK
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TREE PRESERVATION AREAS'
The above leaflet was designed and printed by the Carmel Urban Forestry Comm and.
used to educate Carmel; residents that trees are "an important public resource that
enhances the qual o and. the general welfare of the'City." .Some of the benefits
are ones that many people do not realize:
Improves air quality
Reduces noise
Reduces topsoil: erosion
Provides habitat for wildlife-
Reduces stormwater runoff and replenishes groundwater
Reduces pollutants in stormwater
Protects and increases property values
Costs benefits figures for each of the above categories are available from the Carmel
City Forester.
The following aerial photo shows the remaining forest'acreage in Woodland Terrace and
the mot recent loss of trees' from ProMed and Meadowlark Business Center.
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The proposed 7+ acre site is completely foreste and has an existing Tree Preservat
Area of about one acre (specific number was not available from Staff), which was
established by the Plan Commission prior to this proposal.
Tree Preservation Area Questions:
How many a cr e s have been preserved i n the existing
How many are proposed as a new TPA?
How many .acres of trees on the existing site will be destroy ed?
Where the legal TPA boundary established?
The Construction Plan states t hat.the TPA protective fence to be placed on the D
Line. Be cause o the maturity of many of these tre the drip line maybe extended some
20 -40 feet from the'trunk. Under this scenario, the TPA protective fence might ex tend
into. the building area, retaining wa or parking areas. The concept project drawings show
that there will only
about 20' between the existing TPA and the
building, wa or
parking. It seems that the Applicant is trying. to squeeze too much into this limited,
environmentally sensitive 11
area. 'Because o this designed spacing there will be a
great impact on the root zones of the TPA trees. How c an this dam be avoided?
O ur concern is how, can this much” construction, so close to a TPA, be d one w
severe damage to the existing trees and the
root systems.
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Carmel is the leader in the use of good conservation practices amongst the other- cities in
Indiana. For exainple; awards for Tree City (16 Years), Tree Growth Award (14Years),
Certified Wildlife Friendly Neighborhood Kensington Place (2005 -1 in the State),
Certified Wildlife Friendly Parks, (2010, 1 st in the State), Wildlife Friendly Work Place,
Weihe Engineering (2006, 1 st in the State), Carmel Tree Stars recognition (2009), and
over 300 individuals have Certified•Backyard Wildlife Habitats .in the City of Carmel.
No other City in Indiana appreciates its forest natural resources and uses this as a calling
card for a "Quality of Life" attraction. Both the Carmel City Council and the Plan
Commission play a major role in the direction and philosophy of the future growth of
Carmel.
COURT JUDGMENT AGAINST THE HOLIDAY INN EXPRESS APPLICATION
It is my opinion that the Staff and Plan Commission did not feel that the criteria that the
Court used to deny the Holiday Inn Application on the same property, could be applied to
that being proposed now. Of the eleven (11) findings issued by the Court in 2009 to deny
the Holiday Inn application, I feel that at least six items are applicable to the Justus
Proposal. They are as follow (for details, please refer to the Court findings on December
9, 2009):
a. §23B.02.A.2.a:. The,proposal is not compatible with existing site features
including topography and wooded areas, in that the Proposal necessitates
excessive utilization -of retaining walls and calls for the destruction of virtually all
of a mature woodland."
b. §23B.02.A.2.c: The proposal is not compatible with the surrounding land uses,
which uses have been developed without modifying the topography and
woodlands so drastically." Engineering Department should require the
applicant to provide a "cut and fill" analysis of the total disturbed area to
evaluate these two criteria (a. and b.)
d. §23B.02.A.2.n: The Proposal is not compatible with the existing platted
residential uses, in that the building setbacks with accompanying landscape plans
are not sufficient to safeguard the privacy and quiet enjoyment 'Of the neighboring
residents."
h. §23B.10.02.C(1): The Proposal does not show a planting area equal to an area
measuring 25 feet in depth by the Width of the front of the building plus 20 feet
out on both sides along the building facade that faces U.S. 31, nor does it include
asan alternative an- innovative and original design forthe planting area as
encouraged by §23B':10.C(5).
i. 123B.10.04: The Proposal does not make a reasonable effort to protect and
incorporate theexisting stands of trees into the overall site design, in that fewer
than 70% of all trees that are nine -inch DBH or larger and located within the
perimeter- buffering were preserved."
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SUMMARY
The Justus property is a part of a very complex ecosystem. The forest, wildlife,
topography, soils and watershed along with the existing land uses make for very difficult
and challenging work for City Planners., I have tried to raise the environmental and social
issues that must be considered for any project on this site. The current plans are "too
much on too little" space. With good planning, which considers these issues, the
property could be developed into a very attractive, environmentally friendly commercial
site or park area.
The pictures below illustrate the wildlife diversity that is provided by the present habitat found in and around Kensington Place.
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Vt} Beaver lodge on Meadowlark Park Lake showing wildlife Pileated Woodpecker on railing four feet away
diversity in the Kensington Place area -1007 from sunroom door in Kensington Place home
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the Kensington Place ponds for the survival of Monarch caterpillars
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Canada G oose famil inspecting the Wildlife Habitat sign at Kensington
Place while looking for ah ultimately decided to walk to Meadowlar
Park Lake.
Photographs provided by various Kensington Place residents
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