Developer Tweaks Oyster Point Plans

The developer planning 593 homes on 200 acres off Six Mile Road heads back to the town’s Planning Commission tonight with a revised conceptual plan.

The commission because commissioners said the project was too dense with homes and roads and needed more open space.

Notes from the developer this month indicate the modified proposal actually reduces the overall open space acreage by 2.5 acres, but the developer indicates the new plans have better connectivity for the greenspace.

The new plans do not change the number of homes or the 25-foot buffer between the project and its neighbor. The changes still comply with the town's requiremen that at least 25 percent of the project be open space.

“Key changes evident on this revised plan from the initial concept can be seen in how these open spaces are interconnected,” the developer wrote. “The revised design also provides more uninterrupted open space throughout the development by eliminating or moving key roadways, minimizing the number of roads to be crossed by pedestrians as they walk, run or bike through the site.”

More than two dozen residents meeting. Most feared the increase in traffic would cause congestion along Rifle Range Road, an artery that is prone to delays already, they said.

Oyster Point has added a roundabout, at the town’s recommendation, to its entrance to ease some traffic issues. The original plan offered to fund a turn lane on northbound Rifle Range and Six Mile roads. The developer also suggests studying whether a southbound turn lane could be added.

The bulk of the project’s opponents came from neighboring Ravens Run, a gated community with high-end homes built on 1-acre lots. Most of the area surrounding Oyster Point has a rural feel with single-family homes on large lots.

In addition to fears about the project’s impacts on traffic, residents have also questioned the development’s designed by Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.

Oyster Point’s developers have said from the outset they will preserve the fort’s earthen mounds and provide public access to Fort Palmetto as part of its open space plan.

The developer is seeking a first-of-its-kind Conservation Landscape District zoning. That classification allows the developer to build homes more densely in certain areas so long as it preserves 25 percent of the overall project as open space.

The Planning Commission meets at 5 p.m. tonight at Town Hall on Ann Edwards Lane.