The city council of Raleigh met Tuesday for its regular session to discuss the Cross Link Road traffic calming project and the redevelopment of Washington Terrace into new affordable housing units.
Three items were pulled from the consent agenda, with the remaining passed in full.
Item 6.1 concerned the building of a new parking deck in the warehouse district in downtown Raleigh. The city had initially sent out a request for proposals (RFP) in 2015 to deal with what they called a critical need for parking in that district. The item was approved for a public hearing on October 7 after councilors Maiorano, Stephenson, and Gaylord were recused.
Parking in the warehouse district would help accomodate patrons of Union Station and nearby businesses
Item 9.1 concerned the GoPass Interlocal Agreement between GoRaleigh and Wake County. The agreement allows Wake County employees to ride GoRaleigh at reduced rates. Councilor Weeks had a question for staff about GoPass being used for students and faculty at St. Augustine College and Shaw University. After David Eatman of Public Works said talks had been initiated, the item was approved in full.
Item 14.1 was also pulled by councilor Weeks. The item allowed for the adjustment of school zone speed restrictions to be modified depending on each school’s beginning and end time. Councilor Weeks asked about the new speed reduction signs for schools. City Manager Ruffin Hall said they’d be putting them in “as soon as they can,” and the item was approved.
Z-1-15 was a request to rezone 2.5 acres in downtown Raleigh to downtown mixed use with a 20-story height cap. Dillon Supply Company had made the request to build a mixed use building on the property with one tower. After councilors Maiorano, Stephenson, and Gaylord were excused, city council approved the rezoning.
Z-27A-14 concerned four valid statutory protest petitions (VSPPs) that had been filed in the citywide remapping case. The areas that were affected were along Falls of Neuse and Dunn Roads. Mayor McFarlane asked that the item be held pending conversations between the filers of the VSPPs and city staff.
Courtesy City of Raleigh
The city’s remapping process is a complicated one.
Staff made a presentation regarding the Cross Link traffic calming project and showed that after additional study and extensive outreach into the community that a four-way stop was not necessary as part of the project. Councilor Weeks asked that the item be held for an additional two weeks to allow time for more discussion with the Wake County school district and it was so moved.
The project to clean up Lower Longview Lake moved forward as city staff had taken a poll among property owners to see that an assessment could be done. 22 of 29 property owners indicated their support, with one saying ‘no’ while the other seven either abstained or couldn’t be reached. Mayor McFarlane had concerns about those that did not indicate support. A public hearing was set for September 7.
James Borden / Raleigh Public Record
Longview Lake
The plan to redevelop Washington Terrace was approved. The several month long process had allowed time to work with existing residents and hold design workshops. The plan proposes 162 affordable housing units, with different building types, and a large amount of open space that may be turned into a park. The 162 units would be more affordable housing units created than in each of the past five years.
