Nix9to5

“Why All Parents are Better than You”

// February 18th, 2012 // No Comments » // Children and Babies, Family

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/josette-crosby-plank/french-parents-better_b_1281984.html?ref=parents

The Toddler Brain

// February 14th, 2012 // No Comments » // Children and Babies

(From Pinterest.  It didn’t link to the original source.  Sorry.)

A Picture Says a Thousand Words: The Life of a SAHM

// February 14th, 2012 // No Comments » // Life in General, Work at Home

It has been a month since my last real post. This isn’t a “real” post either, but I saw it, and it made me thing of   . . . me, so I decided to share it with you.  If you are a SAHM or a WAHM, I’m guessing it will remind you of yourself, too:

(I found this on Pinterest.  I’m sorry I can’t attribute it to the original source.)

I have some things I want to share with you here, and the Amazing Amanda sent me a recipe she said was “blog-worthy,” but I’m crazy swamped right now trying to make enough money to pay my taxes.  I’ll be back as soon as humanly possible.

Happy Valentine’s Day, my lovelies.

Letter to the Editor Regarding the “Planned Unit Development” Rezoning Request

// February 3rd, 2012 // No Comments » // Life in General

(Following is the text of a letter I am submitting to the editor of the local newspaper regarding the rezoning of a field adjacent to our property.)

On February 13, 2012, the Piedmont Planning and Zoning Commission will consider a request to rezone the property located at the northeast corner of Cemetery Road and Edmond Road.  The property is currently zoned as “Rural Residential,” but if the rezoning request is approved, the property will be zoned as “Planned Unit Development.”  The rezoning of this land will lead to the construction of a housing addition which will allow for 176 homes to be built on 76.34 acres of property.   In order for this development to take place, the rezoning request must be approved and the Piedmont Comprehensive Plan 2020 and Land Use Map must be amended.

Prior to voting to approve, deny, or table this request, the Piedmont Planning and Zoning Commission will conduct a public hearing at the George Fina Municipal Center at 314 Edmond Road NW.  We encourage all residents to attend this meeting.  This includes residents of Golden Hills, Skyline Estates, and those living on Edmond Road, Harrison Avenue, Tyler Avenue, Polk Avenue, and Taylor Avenue.   However, this development will negatively affect citizens throughout our city.  Construction of this housing development is not what is best for Piedmont.

The most critical step in protecting our city against the issues created by a new housing development is to deny the rezoning request.  The field where the new development is planned was zoned as Rural Residential for a purpose.  Rezoning the land not only defeats the vision for Piedmont, but it opens up the possibility of even greater problems.  “Planned Unit Development” refers to “a designed grouping of varied and compatible land uses, such as housing, recreation, commercial centers, and industrial parks, all within one contained development or subdivision.”  Though the property’s owners promise to build a residential community, promises are easily broken at the prospect of increased profit.   The only way to prevent this property from being used in a manner unfitting to our small-town community is to deny the rezoning request.

Piedmont has long been proud of its sense of community and its small-town atmosphere.  In fact, Piedmont has been able to offer the “best of both worlds” by creating a suburb that maintains its rural roots.   One of the first things people notice upon visiting the city or evaluating real estate in the area is that the housing developments echo the spacious feel of our town.  Homes are built on larger lots than those in surrounding areas.  Houses in Edmond and Northwest Oklahoma City are frequently built on small lots, which gives the neighborhoods in these towns a crowded, claustrophobic feel.  Until now, Piedmont has been able to offer something different.  However, Skyline North Addition will change that.  Similar construction has already taken place at the corner of Piedmont Road and Northwest Expressway.  Many of these homes clustered on smaller lots remain vacant.  Furthermore, the homes currently adjacent to an open field that houses only grazing cattle will suffer decreased property value once their homes back up to closely crowded residential lots.  Not only will those homes adjacent to the planned development see decreased property values, but values of homes in the surrounding neighborhoods will suffer decline as well.

Another important consideration in the rezoning of this property is the influx of traffic created by the addition of 176 homes.  On a proposed map of the planned development, the only inlets to the neighborhood are Tyler Avenue and Edmond Road.  Neither of these roads are equipped to carry a heavy traffic burden.  Tyler Avenue is a residential street, and Edmond Road between Piedmont Road and the Golden Hills addition is a pot-hole laden mess that is already heavily congested by the demands of Piedmont Primary School, Piedmont High School, and which will be further congested by the completion of the Police Department.

Necessary road improvements would entail not only widening Edmond Road to improve traffic flow and alleviate congestion, but it would necessitate proper repair and maintenance of the road.  Furthermore, beyond the high school, Edmond Road is a dirt and gravel road.  With the development Skyline North, Edmond Road must be extended and maintained.  If the city struggles to adequately maintain existing roads, can it be expected to successfully construct and maintain new roads?  Property tax dollars generated by the new homes will be insufficient to adequately construct, repair, and maintain the roads travelled by the new residents.

In addition to the concerns regarding traffic and necessary road improvements, the city’s water and sewage system may prove to be inadequate.  We know that the current sewer lines are insufficient to meet the demands of the new Piedmont Intermediate School which is being built adjacent to the Skyline Estates addition that will border the proposed Skyline North.  If Piedmont’s sewage system cannot handle the demands of our city’s fifth and sixth graders, can it be expected to handle the daily demands of 176 families?

Please attend the public hearing regarding the rezoning of the property at the Northeast corner of Cemetery Road and Edmond Road.  Let the Piedmont Planning and Zoning Commission know that rezoning the land to “Planned Unit Development” is not in the city’s best interests.