Public: Fix Lynwood Center Road now

The meeting was supposed to give neighbors an early look at two potential developments so they could voice concerns.

Instead, it became a call for the city to fix dangerous Lynwood Center Road — now instead of later.

Both proposals are in that area. And neighbors are concerned they would only make traffic worse.

“This is a poster child for mismanagement,” Michael Schwank said, adding that the road has not been fixed in years and has no safety measures for bicyclists or walkers. “We’re not doing anything to mitigate the impacts of these developments.”

Schwank said the city needs to charge developers impacts fees, so homeowners don’t end up paying for everything. It shouldn’t be a “burden on those who had nothing to do with the development.”

Regarding the two projects, Schwank said he saw some good in both, and they should be able to build as long as they pay impact fees for infrastructure.

As for the city, he doesn’t know what’s taking it so long to fix Lynwood Center Road. “They’re waiting for funding to come from I don’t know where.” Charging developers would be better than “waiting for Hail Mary funding from the federal or state government,” Schwank said, adding lack of water and sewage also are concerns.

He wasn’t the only one to criticize the city over Lynwood Center Road.

Rob Avery said there is limited sightline and limited or no shoulders. “We need nonmotorized lanes like Eagle Harbor Drive,” he said. It’s like we’re “waiting for a major disaster to happen.”

Marilyn McLaughlin said noise also is an issue, although not as much anymore since Pleasant Beach bands only play inside now.

The 2 projects

Both projects were presented with a focus on saving the environment.

The first one is a 15-suite inn with an office building and spa. All would be two stories. There would also be a 1,500-square-foot outdoor pool. All would be at 4500 Pleasant Beach Road NE.

The three acres formerly was a Serenity House for disabled adults for 100 years. It was demolished in 2009.

An emphasis is being placed on saving trees. So the development would use the same roads and building sites as before. An estimated 11 trees would be removed in the heavily forested area. The spa, with a Japanese influence, would have massage rooms looking into the forest. There would be four offices on each floor, leaning toward the trend of smaller satellite offices near people’s homes.

The major issue with this project was that it would bring three inns close together, almost creating a destination resort. Three different LLCs make it legal, but some felt it was becoming one big hotel.

The other project is on Baker Hill with six or seven Green Canopy Homes on 6.34 acres. Green Canopy is a leader in net zero, deep green design, development and construction.

Clif and Nelda Swiggert said they want others to follow suit. The homes are beautiful, practical and affordable compared with traditional homes. The sites where the homes would be built are even arranged to keep from removing trees.

“We want to leave the land in its natural state,” Clif said. “We want to minimize the natural amenities as little as possible,” limiting ground disturbance.

The 2,500-square-foot homes will be clustered in a central access point to reduce paving. He said there would be shared access to low-impact trails.

They would also include accessory buildings (mother-in-law homes) of 400 square feet, lead designer Kyle Kutz said.

Soil-pressure drip septic is one of the few viable options, and, fortunately, disturbs the least amount of land. It can weave between the trees in the soil then disperse into the water, Kutz said.