By Pauline Masson –
The City’s iffy recommendations on a request to develop a parcel of ground at the entrance to Liberty Field park for an outdoor storage lot worries some residents, both for the lack of prior disclosure on the sale of city property to allow the development and the impact the storage lot would have on the city park.
The public got its first glimpse of the possible storage lot at the park entrance when a bill approving the contract on the property got preliminary approval with a first reading at the Mar. 7 board of aldermen meeting.
Bill 5190 authorized the mayor or city administrator to sign a special sale contract for city owned property at 129 East Pacific Street, which included a two-story frame house and three additional lots, and the purchase of property at 750 South First Street.
Since the purchase of the South First Street property is part of the transaction, this appears to be a property swap.
The bill does not name the buyer. But Klance Staging 1375 Jefferson Street has requested a conditional use permit (CUP) to construct an outdoor storage lot on the property.
The Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) will hold a public hearing to consider the application for a CUP at its Tuesday Mar. 14 meeting. Citizens will have the opportunity to voice their concerns at that time.
The property zoned M1 light industrial, does not list outdoor storage as a permitted use, which required the buyer to ask P&Z to recommend approval of a conditional use permit.
City Administrator Steve Roth, in his report to the planning commissinioners, said the East Orleans location for an outdoor storage lot is not ideal but would be preferable to a storage lot on the large open lot at the south entrance to Liberty Field.
Residents question the long term effects of establishing an outdoor lot similar to the one at Klance’s Jefferson Street property at the entrance to the high traffic park. They say Liberty Field is a widely used park for by daily walkers and attracts large numbers of visitors to the soccer touraments and the popular Iron Horse Rodeo each fall
But a more worrisome question, they say, is how the city can enter into a contract to sell city property without prior public notice that would allow other interested parties to bid on the property.
Roth did not name the owner of the South First Street Property but several citizens did property searches with the State and determined that the owner was V4 Investments, which lists Klance Staging as its address.
Without making a specific recommendation that P&Z approve the request, the staff report accentusted the positives of the proposed dual transactioin.
“At this location the use (outdoor storagee) is complementary to existing uses to the north (storage buildings) and west (metals recycling), the staff report says but adds that negatives could be mitigted.
”The location adjacent to City park property of course is not ideal, but can be reasonably mitigated with the addition of visual barriers and screens, including landscaping or fencing, or potentially both.”
“It is my understanding the applicant intends to preserve the existing residential structure on the property, and possibly use it for either office or residential purposes,” Roth reported. “Residential use here would be permitted, but in general of course such residential use is not ideal, given its proximity to the proposed storage yard and the other nearby light industrial uses.”
Roth also made a pitch for planning commissioners to consider the benefits of the property swap in determining whether or not to approve the CUP to allow the storage lot.
“We would request the Commission also consider the 750 S. First Street property, which the City would acquire as part of this transaction,” Roth said. “This parcel in our judgment is more beneficial to the City than the 129 E. Pacific property, given its proximity to the south Liberty Field entrance and to immediately adjacent City-owned properties. Staff would not support an open storage use at the 750 S. First St. location. The 129 E. Pacific Street location in our judgment is much better suited for the open storage use proposed for this CUP. “
Residents will have an opportunity to voice their concerns when P&Z holds a public hearing on Klance Staging’s request for a CUP Tuesday evening.
Lots of “not ideal’s” in this description. But it’s the old ‘it could be worse’ trickery.
The open storage that is requested is for a gravel parking lot for 18 wheeler style trailers, at least it will be a permeable surface.
No mention of other storage is listed, very suspicious.
Remember the city’s habit of not looking when approved uses are suddenly forgotten.
I can see the ‘office’ turning into a sleep over for the truck drivers, not permitted but ignored,
thus cheating local motels of revenue and the tax payers out of hotel/ motel taxes.
The shady transfer of property is par for the course for Steevie and the crew.. But if the deal was so good why did in take the threat of eminent domain in double secret executive closed session over several meetings?
The City of Pacific is a unique city. It appears to function as a ghost city with no apparent people involved. It pops up with plans birthed by a Dictator who uses a title of City Administrator. It has an elected Board of Aldermen who serve for the sole purpose to act as legislators so no one will actually believe it is really run by ghost 👻. It uses a City Attorney hostile to questions asked of him and a Mayor who would rather not get involved. Also it has a City Marshal who runs around looking to
lock up homeless people. Put all these facts together and one must conclude that Ghost must actually run the City of Pacific.