At the December 2017 BMA meeting, our aldermen voted to increase the density of the of the PUD that includes the Watermark Apartment Complex in the Forest Hill Heights area to eighteen residential units per acre. Previously, in 2016, the BMA overlaid the area's office zoning with a T5 Smart Growth designation. According to the petition, it was at that time that the density was limited to twelve residential units per acre.
The petitioners request, in effect, is that the Chancery Court reverse the December 2017 BMA action. I am advised that, in order to prevail, the petitioners must show that the BMA's December 2017 decision to increase the residential density was arbitrary and capricious.
I uploaded the entire Writ here.
Below are pages 6-9 of the Writ, which list the facts and recommended action. It gives a brief overview of the history of the zoning issues in the area.
Just as many defending the administration have said, the Small Area Plan is simply guidelines, with no requirement that developments follow it in part or in whole. While I sympathize with the petitioners and agree with their position against higher-density developments, there is no basis in law to force any change in the plans.
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