Opposition to Crestwood Hills Development Clearcut

  • by: Andrea P
  • recipient: Subdivision Committee of the Birmingham Planning Commission c/o City Clerk City Hall-3rd Floor 710 North 20th Street Birmingham, Alabama 35203, 205-254-2290, Planning Engineering and Permits Tom Magee City Hall 2nd Floor 710 20th Street North Birmingham,S, Birmingham, AL

Objection to approval of the Preliminary Subdivision Plat, soil erosion and sediment controlpermit, excavation, grading and building Permits 

Parcel I. D.  NO.23-28-3-2-22.00, Case No.  SUB2017-00004 having a street address of 770 12th Avenue South Birmingham, AL

I am writing to express my strong opposition to the proposed Crestwood Hills development of 29 homes on 6.5 acres in Crestwood South. As a resident of the neighborhood, I have a number of concerns about how this development would change the area as we know and love it. 


While we are aware that the new development does not require a zoning change, the City must approve the preliminary subdivision plat as being designed in character with the existing surrounding subdivisions. The currently proposed building is New Craftsman style. The neighborhoods of Crestwood South and Avondale are comprised of a combination of mid-century ranch homes and historic bungalow style, with the vast majority of buildings being built in the first half of the last century. The Crestwood South neighborhood, the area from which residents would enter the proposed Crestwood Hills development, is almost exclusively one-level brick homes on larger lots. We as neighbors have concerns that the style of the new Crestwood Hills development would significantly clash with the surrounding buildings and detract from the character of the neighborhood. This style of house built on lots completely devoid of the large hardwoods currently covering the entire subdivision property and prevalent on the lots in the surrounding neighborhood makes this proposed subdivision plat and home design extremely different from its surrounding neighborhoods. We do not support allowing homes that do not fit the scale or architecture of the neighborhood and the clear cutting of trees in a neighborhood full of majestic hardwoods to dominate and take away from the overall fabric and feeling of history that make Crestwood and Avondale such wonderful places to live.

We would ask that, as the people serving to protect and preserve our neighborhoods, you deny the approval for this preliminary subdivision plat and not allow this subdivision plan to go forward. Our objections are based on 1) the incompatibility of the style of the homes, 2) the size of the homes in relation to the lot sizes, 3) the density of homes for the size of the overall property and 4) the additional strain such a development will place on the infrastructure of the neighborhood including City services such as police, sanitary sewer systems, and storm water drainage facilities and the removal of massive amounts of mature trees with no green areas and large trees to remain in the aftermath of the clear cutting of the proposed area.

We feel the Tower Homes team has not put the requisite thought or effort into respecting the historic nature of the neighborhood and respectfully request they revisit their design to address these concerns by 1) reducing the number and size of the homes in the subdivision, 2) change the style to better fit the character of the neighborhood,and 3) leave larger trees and mature vegetation in designated green spaces and buffer areas on and around the subdivision property.

Subdivision Committee of the Birmingham Planning Commission


c/o City Clerk


City Hall-3rd Floor
710 North 20th Street
Birmingham, Alabama 35203
205-254-2290


Planning Engineering and Permits


Tom Magee


City Hall 2nd Floor
710 20th Street North
Birmingham, Al 35203
Phone: 205-254-2211


Subdivision Platting


Roderick Lowe


City Hall 2nd Floor
710 20th Street North
Birmingham, Al 35203


RE: Objection to approval of the Preliminary Subdivision Plat, soil erosion and sediment control permit, excavation, grading and building permits, Parcel I. D. no. 23-28-3-2-22.00, case no. SUB2017-00004 having a street address of 770 12th Avenue South Birmingham AL.


I am writing to express my strong opposition to the proposed Crestwood Hills development in Crestwood South. As a resident of the neighborhood, I have several concerns about how this development would change the area as we know and love it.


While we are aware that the new development does not require a zoning change, the City must approve the preliminary subdivision plat as being designed in character with the existing surrounding subdivisions. The currently proposed building is New Craftsman style. The neighborhoods of Crestwood South and Avondale are comprised of a combination of mid-century ranch homes and historic bungalow style, with the vast majority of buildings being built in the first half of the last century. The Crestwood South neighborhood, the area from which residents would enter the proposed Crestwood Hills development, is almost exclusively one-level brick homes on larger lots. We as neighbors have concerns that the style of the new Crestwood Hills development would significantly clash with the surrounding buildings and detract from the character of the neighborhood. This style of house built on lots completely devoid of the large hardwoods currently covering the entire subdivision property and prevalent on the lots in the surrounding neighborhood makes this proposed subdivision plat and home design extremely different from its surrounding neighborhoods. We do not support allowing homes that do not fit the scale or architecture of the neighborhood, and this design and the clear cutting of trees in a neighborhood full of majestic hardwoods would dominate the area and take away from the overall fabric and feeling of natural beauty and history that make Crestwood and Avondale such wonderful places to live.


 


We would ask that, as the people serving to protect and preserve our neighborhoods, you deny the approval for this preliminary subdivision plat and not allow this subdivision plan to go forward. Our objections are based on 1) the incompatibility of the style of the homes, 2) the size of the homes in relation to the lot sizes, 3) the density of homes for the size of the overall property, and 4) the additional strain such a development will place on the infrastructure of the neighborhood including City services such as police, sanitary sewer system, and storm water drainage facilities, and 5) the removal of massive amounts of mature trees leaving no green spaces and no large trees after clear cutting the entire property.


 


We feel the Tower Homes team has not put the requisite thought or effort into respecting the historic nature of the neighborhood and respectfully request they revisit their design to address these concerns by 1) reducing the number and size of the homes in the subdivision, 2) change the style of the homes and the layout to better fit the character of the neighborhood, and 3) leave larger trees on the lots and trees and mature vegetation in designated green spaces and buffer areas on and around the subdivision property.


Sincerely

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