The Monastery developer, New Urban West, presented a program to the Preserve Sierra Madre Steering Group on March 8th and then again to the Sierra Madre City Council on March 9th. Several issues of concern regarding their presentation follow:
Cookie Cutter Houses: The presentation centered on their plans for four individual architects to design four styles of homes: Farmhouse, Craftsman, Spanish and Modern. They refer to their design efforts as ‘Sierra Madre quality’. We believe the designs have the feel of cookie cutter homes and the quantity and layout of the 42 homes accentuates a tract housing look in this ungated community.
Carter Avenue Access: The road to Carter on the east side of the development will now be egress only requiring all vehicles to exit the property onto this narrow section of Carter adjacent to Bailey Canyon Park. The impact on local roads, pedestrians and the park is unknown at this time. The EIR will address traffic patterns and impact.
Net Zero Water Usage: The development will have a net zero water usage. One aspect includes plans to capture storm water on site. More details are required to fully understand how this will be accomplished. More details about net zero water usage will be forthcoming in the Mountain Views News in April.
West Side Separation: Current plans provide for a 20 foot separation between the existing homes on the west side of the development and the rear properties of the new development. Neighbors believe this will have a huge negative impact on property values.
Timeline: In April, the Specific Plan will be finalized and made available to residents by the City. In May/June, the Environmental Report (EIR) will be released. There will be a 60-day period for the City and the residents to make comments. The comments must be in writing and mailed/emailed to the City for review and response. After the 60 day period, no changes to the EIR can be made. This is a critical phase of the review process and we ask all of you to be diligent and submit your comments to the City before the deadline.
As critical as the EIR and Strategic Plan are, the public discussions and City review take place when the Monastery and New Urban West present their plans to the Planning Commission, and then to the City Council. This will likely happen in July. All Preserve Sierra Madre members need to read and learn about the project, show up, and speak up at these meetings.
