Murphy Creek/Gun Club Neighbors

13th tee before
13th tee before RV/Boat storage
Do we want this in our neighborhood??
13th tee after
13th tee after RV/Boat storage
Questions and Answers

Q:  Isn’t the RV Storage project a done deal?

 

A:  ABSOLUTELY NOT…even though the project was approved by the Planning and Zoning commissioners, many of our neighbors mailed, emailed, and called the City Council members, and they agreed to call up the issue and hold another public hearing.  This public hearing will be held at the Municipal Building, 15151 East Alameda Parkway, at 7:30 p.m. in Council Chambers on the 1st floor on Monday, August 22, 2011.  It is VERY important that as many residents as possible attend this meeting to let the City Council hear our voices.

 

Q:  I live on the other side of the community, so the RV self storage doesn’t really affect me, does it?

 

A:  IT MOST CERTAINLY DOES…you may not feel that you are affected by this project, but everything that goes on in the community affects us all.  Today they may want to build an RV self storage facility on the opposite side of the community from you, but tomorrow they may want to build something equally offensive on your side of the community, and you will want and need the support of the entire community to protect and preserve your quality of life and your property values.

 

Q:  Murphy Creek covenants don’t allow RVs to be parked in our driveways, so my neighbor parks his in the street.  Won’t it be great when he parks his RV in the proposed RV self storage facility?    

 

A:  DREAM ON…there are already 8 RV storage facilities in the area, including one that is less than 1 mile from Murphy Creek.  If your neighbor wanted to store his RV in a self storage facility, he would have already done so.  Even if the proposed RV self storage is built, your neighbor may still park his RV in the street.  So, not only will you still have to look at his RV, you will have to look at 227 other RVs as well. 

 

Q:  I saw the plans for the proposed RV self storage facility at the meeting in the Clubhouse in May, and it looked fairly attractive.  Since the facility will be built with Murphy Creek design standards in mind, why should I be concerned about its looks?

 

A:  Unfortunately, no amount and style of landscaping will be able to blend this facility in with the design of the community.  Even attractive brick walls can only be built so tall, and they will never be tall enough to hide the tops of all the RVs that will be stored there.

 

Q:  I thought the proposed RV self storage facility was going to have attractive canopies covering all the RVs.  Won’t that help to blend the facility in with the community?

 

A:  Artists' renderings always show the absolute best case for a development.  Due to the cost of the canopies, this design feature has already been pulled from the plans. 
 

Q:  We all knew that development would eventually happen out here, so why should we try to prevent the inevitable?

 

A:  You’re right…we all knew that development would eventually happen out here, but, based on the General Development Plan for this area and the City zoning codes, this is not the type of development we were led to believe would happen here.

 

Q:  I’m a little confused about the zoning of the area for the proposed RV/Boat and Self Storage project.  If this area wasn’t zoned for this type of development, how could this project move forward?

 

A:  RV storage is not mentioned in the General Development Plan (GDP) for Murphy Creek Commercial zoning; therefore it is NOT allowed.  In order to allow this type of use, the GDP would have to be amended, and this would require a hearing before the Planning Commission and City Council.  In order to avoid having to amend the GDP, the RV storage was proposed as an “accessory use” to the self storage facility.

 

Q:  If you are building a self storage facility anyway, isn’t RV storage a good “accessory use”?

 

A:  As defined in the City Code, “Accessory use means a use of land or of a building or portion thereof customarily incidental and subordinate to the principal use of the land or building and located on the same lot with the principal use.”  Given this definition, RV storage is definitely a good “accessory use” to a self storage facility.  However, the issue is the amount of RV storage that is planned for the facility.

 

Q:  How much of the total self storage facility will be dedicated to RV storage?

 

A:  Sixty-three percent (63%) of the total facility storage will be dedicated to RV storage.  The dictionary definition of “subordinate” is:  “of less importance; secondary”.  Sixty-three percent of anything is NOT an “accessory use”.  Once that type of percentage is dedicated to a use, then that use becomes the “primary use” of the facility, not the “accessory use”.  If 63% of this facility will be RV storage, then the developer should be required to get an amendment to the GDP. 

Please visit the Bulletin Board to post your comments and questions.