By Robert Medley
Managing Editor
A developer who wants to build duplexes along Yukon’s Main Street, State Highway 66, in the eastern part of the city may have another chance to move forward with the project.
Twice, the Yukon Planning Commission has denied an application for the project.
But the issue is back on the Yukon Planning Commission agenda for Monday, Nov. 8.
The meeting is at 7 p.m. at 12 S. 5th Street, in the Centennial Building.
On Monday, attorney David M. Box will make a request on behalf of the developer, Ashton Gray LLC. The request will be for a “deferred preliminary plat” that “was waiting for a zoning resolution,” located at 200 N. Yukon Parkway, according to the agenda item posted by the Yukon Planning Commission in advance of the meeting.
The tract of land contains 204,823 square feet, or 4.70 acres.
The item is the only issue on the agenda for the Monday, Nov. 8 meeting.
In June, a request to rezone commercial property in the undeveloped part of east Yukon to allow 24 duplexes was denied by the Yukon Planning Commission for a second time.
Concerns about traffic, overcrowded school classrooms and Yukon’s comprehensive development plan were heard from residents, and commissioners agreed to stop the duplexes.
Ashton Gray LLC had requested rezoning 4.73 acres at 200 N. Yukon Parkway. The request was made by the Ashton Gray attorney David Box to rezone a restricted commercial area to a combined residential district with an additional application for a planned unit development over the entire property. The purpose of the rezoning would be to permit duplex development on the site, according to information provided to the planning commission.
The planning commissioners voted unanimously against approving the rezoning request.
In a letter to the planning commission on Nov. 2 Box wrote, “The plat was originally presented to the Yukon Planning Commission on Jan. 11, 2021, accompanied with rezoning and PUD (planned unit development) applications for the property. The application was denied under the mistaken belief that they did not comply with the 2040 Yukon Comprehensive Plan. The plat application was deferred while the applications were appealed to the Yukon City Council on April 6, 2021. At the April 6 meeting, applicant and city staff acknowledged an error in the staff report provided to the planning commission regarding the application’s consistency with the Yukon Comprehensive Plan and the applications were remanded back to the planning commission. The applications were heard again by the planning commission on June 14 where the applications were denied. The applications were appealed and heard once more by Yukon City Council on July 20, 2021, where they were both approved.
Since the rezoning and PUD applications have both been approved, the plat is now presented to the planning commission for approval.
The plat has been deferred since Jan. 11, 2021 and is now scheduled to be heard at the planning commission meeting on Nov. 8, 2021. The plat will divide the property into 12 lots, 24 duplex units, and one common area consisting of a drainage easement. The plat is to be heard in accordance with the approved applications.
The current preliminary plat application is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and is compatible with the surround area. The proposed plat will serve to diversify the housing options available within the City of Yukon by providing a desirable product for current and future members of this community. Accordingly, applicant respectfully requests the planning commission to grant the plat application requested,” Box wrote in the letter.
