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My own comments are in [ ] after the excerpt.  Feel free to leave your own comments at the end of this blog entry.

 

Excerpts from the Declaration of Rights, Covenant, Restrictions, Affirmative Obligations and Conditions Applicable to TimberCreek. (Third Supplement, February 1996).

 

Preamble:  “…the developer desires to provide for the preservation of the value of the Phase Four Property… To subject the Phase Four Property to the Original Declaration… for the benefit of the Phase Four Property and every Owner of any and all parts thereof.”

 

Section 3.01:      “The primary purpose of these covenants… the creation of a subdivision that is aesthetically pleasing and functionally convenient”

 

Section 3.02:      “Lots limited to Residential Use.  All lots shall be used for single-family residential purposes only”

 

Section 3.07:      “Lights.  [should not] be located, directed, or of such intensity as to affect adversely the enjoyment of any adjacent Property Owner.”     

 

Section 3.12:      “Offensive Activity.  No noxious or offensive activity shall be carried on upon any lot…” 

[If the proposed development includes businesses licensed to sell alcohol there is a high likelihood of excessive noise and the dangers of drunk drivers on the roads of the neighborhood.]

 

Article 5:              “Purpose: To preserve the natural beauty of TimberCreek and its setting… in a pleasant and desirable environment” 

 

Article 7:              “In order to protect the natural beauty of the vegetation, topography and other natural features…”    [The article goes on to detail environmental controls for the trees and wetlands in the subdivision.]

 

 

Excerpts from the TimberCreek Residential Design Guidelines. (January 20^th 1993)

 

Introduction by J. Richard Miller III:   “The concept of TimberCreek is unique.  Accordingly, these guidelines will help you understand and appreciate the attention to special detail that will make TimberCreek residences so individual and yet compatible”

[The guidelines go on to prescribe what plants and shrubs may be planted, how high fences should be, maximum height of buildings etc.  If a subdivision is sold to commercial enterprises it is highly unlikely that these guidelines will be enforced and as such Mr. Miller’s vision for TimberCreek will be destroyed.]

 

Excerpts from Preparing Daphne for the Future – a comprehensive plan for 2000 to 2020 (June 2003)

Vision:

To be a safe, healthy, caring and progressive City committed to a high quality of life, financial self-sufficiency, a spirit of civic cooperation, a strong sense of community, and a positive environment for educational, personal, cultural, religious, and business growth. Through comprehensive planning, the citizens of Daphne intend to manage and direct the City's growth, ensure the highest quality of living for each resident, stimulate economic growth, and attract quality industry.

 

Paramount to this decision [the need for a long-range growth and development plan] was the need to provide greater public involvement during the early stages of the planning process.

 

Daphne often referred to as "The Jubilee city" has had a rich and colorful past and has tried hard to maintain the small town atmosphere, a trait that attracted many of its more recent residents.

 

To focus solely on the preservation of the natural environment would be to restrict severely or even stop residential and commercial development. Unrestricted commercial development would be at the expense of the residential environment, and vice-versa. The purpose of this plan is to provide for the enhancement of the overall quality of life by balancing the demands of all three environments.

 

Housing Goal: To provide Daphne residents with adequate and appropriate housing opportunities to ensure that current housing demand is met and to encourage quality residential growth.

 

Open space and Recreation goal:  To establish, a progressive and farsighted approach that provides the highest standard of quality recreational facilities and environment by promoting fitness, relaxation and sportsmanship.

 

Community Services Goal: Seek to establish a more informed public by making information on governmental activities more accessible and to provide governmental services in a timely manner and at the most cost effective level in existing and proposed service areas.

Future Land Use Map [clearly showing no Commercial properties north of I-10]

Industrial development is planned to be located in the eastern part of Daphne. Directly adjacent to the industrial area is a commercial corridor to encourage commercial uses which are related to, or similar to, the industrial facilities. Institutional uses, such as fire stations, schools, and municipal buildings are located strategically throughout the city to serve the entire population as needed.

 

The future land use map also shows an increase in park land and open space so that almost every residential neighborhood has convenient access to the natural world.

 

 

Plan of Action:  Amend and enforce Daphne's Land Use and Development Ordinance to protect and preserve established neighborhoods. Include: service roads and access, preservation of residential traffic, circulation, aesthetics, sidewalks, mobile home and manufactured home development, parking and farm lands. Responsible: Planning Commission, City Departments, City Council

 

Plan of Action:  Continue to promote and expand the existing recreation programs for both youth and adults.  Responsible: City Departments, Public/Private Committees.

 

Plan of Action: Promote infill development and the use of vacant commercial buildings. This action should be the main thrust of the Daphne/Eastern Shore Chamber of Commerce (DESCC).

Responsible: Mayor/Administration, DESCC

 

Plan of Action: Work with neighborhood associations (form where needed) and the City of Daphne in lobbying for specific common needs. Responsible: Public/Private Committees.

 

Plan of Action: Take advantage of opportunities as they arise to develop neighborhood and community parks. Place emphasis on development of larger parks (neighborhood type) as opposed to smaller, pocket parks to increase recreational opportunities and decrease maintenance. Responsible: City Departments, Developers and Businesses

 

Housing Objective:  Maintain and improve the unique assets and opportunities which make Daphne a desirable place to live and work.

 

Housing Recommendation:  Enforce Daphne’s zoning ordinance and subdivision regulations to protect and preserve established neighborhoods.

 

Housing Recommendation:  Maintain and improve the unique assets and opportunities which make Daphne a desirable place to live and work.

 

Transportation: Queues exist along U.S. Highway 98 northbound in the peak A.M. hours at the I-10 interchange. The tremendous growth rates being experienced by Daphne and the communities south of Daphne are compounding this situation. The queuing is expected to continue, creating critical levels within the planning period.

 

Open Space and Recreation: This element is concerned with open space and recreation which may seem somewhat superfluous when compared with housing, transportation and utility systems. While these issues may or may not be fundamental to the health, safety and welfare of residents, they are vital to maintaining the happiness of residents and the desired image of the city.  An open space and recreation system consists of site, facilities and programs which perform several functions. The most basic function is the provision of recreational services to residents. An effective system can also provide a wide range of leisure time experiences, help protect sensitive environmental resources, and be an important visual feature in the community.

 

objective: Ensure that the City and the private sector should coordinate in a continuing and professional effort to provide adequate open space to meet the needs of the projected population for the initial and remaining increments of the planning period. This objective shall be accomplished using the site plan and subdivision review processes.

 

Open space definition:  Open spaces, or urban green spaces, are passive areas in landscaped or natural state in or near urban areas. These areas provide environmental quality or act as buffers. Their main recreational purpose is to break-up atmospheres of congestion and to provide aesthetic experience

 

Land Use

 

Goal:  Provide a land use plan for the City of Daphne, which supports the City's economic development, housing, transportation, and open space, recreation and education goals in a manner that maintains and promotes Daphne's unique image and quality of life.

 

Objectives:

 

·         Establish minimum requirements for parks and "green" areas based on criteria such as acreage,

·         population density and land use.

·         Insure appropriate land is available for industrial development.

·         Treat the land and water as non-renewable resources.

·         Preserve the history and beauty of Daphne and its surroundings.

 

Goal: Grow sensibly by anticipating land use needs.

 

Objectives:

·         Promote and manage growth on undeveloped lands in a manner that will be compatible with, and complementary to, existing adjacent developed properties.

·         Encourage zoning regulations that are more site specific in nature to limit incompatible use and/or development.

 

 

Recommendations: [My bold higlighting]

 

Protect and conserve neighborhoods and their individual characters from encroaching commercial development and through the development of parks, open spaces and buffers.

 

Make an effort to eliminate existing and potential nuisances through ordinance review and long-range consideration of land use compatibility.

 

Protect and preserve the character of Daphne through review of new developments, the encouragement of growth that enhances the community spirit, and through aesthetic considerations.

 

Concentrate industrial land uses in the southern portion of Daphne between Alabama Highway 98 and County Road 27 south County Road 64.

 

Integrate recreational resources with residential neighborhoods to insure that all portions of Daphne's population have convenient access to parks and open space. Promote clustered commercial development in defined areas.

 

 

Land Use Compatibility

 

The current Land Use and Development Ordinance has provisions for visual and noise buffering between incompatible land uses. This resulted from complaints from residents primarily located in the east Daphne area who are adjacent to heavy commercial development and the resulting traffic. Buffering requirements are increasing as new developments, both commercial and residential, occur near established neighborhoods.

 

Commercial development in Daphne is mainly strip type development without any clustering of similar types of businesses. The result is offices adjacent to car repair next to retail stores. Not only has the lack of commercial clustering resulted in an aesthetically displeasing landscape, but has also contributed to traffic congestion because of the lack of service roads to serve a particular type of development. Further more, specific types of traffic are not funneled in one direction.

 

Daphne has several strong and cohesive neighborhoods, which attract growth and promote stability. Conservation of these neighborhoods should be a high priority as new industrial, commercial and residential growth continues to occur.

 

 

Parks and open spaces are part of the amenities that attract residents to Daphne and help maintain a high quality of life.

 

Increased urbanization of Daphne will result in increased stormwater runoff. This increased stormwater drainage has the potential to further erode creek beds, increasing the potential of flooding, as well as increasing the pollutants in Mobile Bay.

 

 

 

CONCLUSION

In general, Daphne needs to continue to improve its gateways and entrances. Attention should be paid to their appearance so that they convey the quality and character of the community in positive light. Streetscapes use many significant urban design elements and represent a merger of these elements. Though several areas demonstrate high-quality urban design, the city contains many unattractive streetscapes. As the city continues to grow, more attention and care is warranted to improve the visual quality and design of Daphne. The downtown area should provide a unique theme. A return to the true Main street theme is recommended to entice pedestrian circulation and create visual pleasure.