55.0°
Pollard possibilites: A rendering of the lodge building that is part of the Pollard Station development. Courtesy photo |
CommentsPollard Station Application Withdrawn
Published: January 25, 2010 * Web Exclusive *by Olivia Dwyer
FNC Communities has withdrawn its application from the Town of Truckee Planning Commission for the Pollard Station senior community development on an eight-acre parcel in the Hilltop area.The application was scheduled for a workshop with the planning commission at its Jan. 13 meeting, but FNC withdrew it the day before. Heath Bynum of FNC said that the project will move forward, but that any workshop or formal hearing with the Planning Commission has been “postponed” for the time being.
“The reason for that was that as we got our plan out into the community and the information went public, we received some concerns from local landowners about the design of Pollard Station,” Bynum said.
“We’re fully expecting some continuing dialogue with these folks, but we haven’t had any meaningful discussions since [the application was withdrawn],” said Town Manager Tony Lashbrook.
John McLaughlin, the town’s community development director, recused himself from the Pollard Station planning process since he resides near the project site. Lashbrook is acting in his place.
Bynum said that over the next three or four weeks, FNC will work with concerned community members to make design modifications.
“In general, what we’re trying to do is make sure the project fits as closely as possible to the design elements of the Hilltop Master Plan,” Bynum said.
Lashbrook said that the withdrawn Pollard Station proposal did not follow the guidelines of the Hilltop Master Plan, which was adopted by the town in August 2008.
“The Pollard Station project is the first development application to come in after the Master Plan was adopted, and it would require some pretty dramatic modifications to the Hilltop Master Plan for it to move forward,” Lashbrook said.
In the Pollard Station pre-application review, Lashbrook said that staff reports indicated design guidelines relating to building size and scale from the Master Plan were not followed. The proposed building would be over 120,000 square feet, larger than any building in Truckee. The tree removal and grading required for a building this size also differed from the regulations of the Hilltop Master Plan.
Bynum said that FNC plans to schedule another workshop or formal review with the Planning Commission in the future.
“We’ve obviously got some concerns that we want to address first,” he said. “That date is still open. We think we’ve got some momentum behind the project and we think it’s something that is definitely needed in Truckee.”
0 Reader Comments so far ...
Be the first to comment on this article!