Joint Resolution in Support of the Hillside District Plan

Rabbit Creek Community Council, Huffman/O’Malley Community Council, HALO Inc,
Mid-Hillside Community Council, Hillside East Community Council, Bear Valley Community Council,

The Anchorage 2020 Comprehensive Plan was adopted in early 2001. The Plan specifies that additional detailed plans and standards will be developed for effective implementation. Maximum public input is at the core of the Plan and all subsequent detailed plans.

The Plan’s prescription for detailed planning range from topics such as commercial landscaping standards, to more complex neighborhood and town center plans. The Hillside District Plan (HDP) affects a quadrant of the city that includes areas of undeveloped land with environmental challenges in a traditionally rural setting.

While some of the component planning is underway, the Municipality of Anchorage has not committed funds for neighborhood plans and the complex HDP in particular. The lack of a HDP results in piecemeal development which creates inefficient land use patterns and overloaded infrastructure in Southeast Anchorage. Neighborhoods are degraded and the city’s taxpayers face unnecessary expense to deal with cumulative impacts of piecemeal development.

Planning decisions that the Plan is meant to addresses include traffic impacts, placement of infrastructure, residential density, and protection of neighborhood character. However, without a HDP, key decisions on density are left to agency or political inclination. The recent Terraces subdivision issue, with substantial higher density abutting a traditional R-6 neighborhood, is a prime example of the need for comprehensive community planning.

The Municipality should follow the promise of the Anchorage 2020 Comprehensive Plan, which specifies a Hillside District Plan to determine land use densities and urban/rural service levels in Southeast Anchorage. Until this plan is completed, the city should not permit high-density development or commercial development in a piecemeal fashion across the Hillside.

Be it resolved by the organizations above, that the following measures are critical to avoid inefficient and incompatible development in Southeast Anchorage:

Fund the Hillside District Plan. Assembly representatives and MOA departments are urged to be strategic and persistent in pursuing funding for a Hillside District Plan in the 2003 budget. Funding should include adequate MOA staff to oversee the process.

Eliminate sewer/density mandate. Comprehensive planning must accompany decisions on residential density. Connecting to the MOA sewer system shall not establish a minimum density. Remove the current required minimum 3 dwelling units per acre density for sewer service.

Moratorium on Non-residential Development. Until adoption of a Hillside District Plan, place a moratorium on new non-residential developments, and on rezoning for commercial uses, industrial uses, or multi-family housing south of Abbott Road and east of the New Seward Highway.

Moratorium on R-6 Rezones. Decisions that include density, infrastructure, transportation, level of services and environmental issues should be determined through the adoption of the Hillside District Plan. Place a moratorium on down-sizing R-6 lots.

Traffic Impact Analysis and Accountability. For non-residential development, and for residential developments with more than four lots that are less than 1.25 acres each, a traffic impact analysis should be done. The analysis should take into account potential traffic from other nearby undeveloped properties. The developer should fund upgrades in adjoining areas if warranted by the increased traffic.

Mitigation of Neighborhood Traffic Impacts. New developments should direct their vehicular traffic to main collectors and arterials to lessen the impact on adjoining neighborhoods. The developer should design and fund deterrents to ‘cut-through’ traffic on non-collector roads that connect to the new development. Pedestrian connectivity in new developments should be provided with dedicated public easements.

Transition Zones. Developments with lots that will be 20% smaller than adjoining areas should have an adequate periphery transition zone . A transition zone may consist of a double band of lots equal to those adjoining the new development; alternatively, the transition zone may consist of undisturbed natural space, protected by dedicated easement and consisting of a depth equal to one band of lots the same size as those adjoining the development.

Protection of Natural Buffers. If natural open space buffers are platted in new developments, guarantee their natural condition with dedicated easements and with bonds posted at the time of construction of adjoining infrastructure and buildings. Bonds should cover restoration if buffers are degraded by construction.

Usable Public Open Space. Large developments should provide usable public open space within their boundaries due to insufficient or poorly distributed open space in Southeast Anchorage. Usable space is defined as having gentle grades, located for safe pedestrian access with adequate width to length ratio (no narrow remnants), and not subject to pre-emptive uses such as parking or snow storage.

Signed by:

Rabbit Creek Community Council
Huffman/O'Malley Community Council
Hillside East Community Council
Mid-Hillside Community Council
Bear Valley Community Council
HALO, Inc.

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Anchorage, AK 99511-3006 US
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