The pandemic has slowed us down but many of our activities in the Navajo neighborhoods continue. The Allied Gardens Grantville Community Council (AGGCC) had to cancel the annual Holiday Festival at Lewis Middle School and the Children’s Tree Lighting Ceremony. But we still got the holiday lights up over the bridge and at the Waring Road-Zion Avenue triangle.
At the time of this drafting, the AGG Beautiful Project during the week of Nov. 28 and the work at the Navajo Canyon trail head on Dec. 5 promise to be a great success. We are so very proud of the event organizers Kim Morris and Sophia Frost for their work in putting it all together and so thankful for the many neighbors who participated. Go to our website at aggccouncil.org/aggbeautiful for pictures of all of us hard at work.
The Navajo Community Planners, Inc. (NCPI) has not been idle. Consideration of a proposed development of the vacant property bordered by Del Cerro Boulevard (the Chevron gas station) and the freeway, and between College Avenue and the residences on Marne Avenue has been before the community planning group for the past year. This property has been vacant and in private ownership since the Del Cerro development was completed.
There have been several attempts to develop it under the current RS-1-7 zoning, most recently with approval for 24 single-family dwellings. That developer did not proceed with project. All Peoples Church — currently located at 5500 University Ave. — obtained ownership rights and filed its application to build its new church on the location.
Because the All Peoples Church use will not conform to the current zoning, an application for a Planned Development Permit must go through the planning process with final consideration by the City Council. On its way to that final authority, the development application passes through NCPI for a vote on whether or not to recommend the project. There have been several hearings, most recently on Nov. 5 by an NCPI subcommittee and on Nov. 11 by the NCPI board.
The next occasions for continued public comment and input on the development have not been set. Those dates will be found in the meeting agendas. The agendas and Zoom access instructions will be sent to the AGGCC mailing lists and will be found at navajoplanners.org during the week before that meeting.
Folks in Allied Gardens may feel that this development is too far from our area of interest to raise our concerns. However, the property in question is remarkably similar in size, configuration, and private ownership to the canyon west of Waring Road — the area that runs from behind the houses on Orcutt Avenue south to the condominiums at the intersection of Waring Road and Adobe Falls Road. What happens in Del Cerro might well predict what can happen in Allied Gardens.
At monthly meetings of the AGGCC Board of Directors, the community designs and implements important projects. Use the “Contact Us” page at aggccouncil.org to let us know how we can help you support our neighborhood and to get on our email contact list. The board will not meet in December. Our next board meeting will be on Jan. 5.
— By Allied Gardens Grantville Community Council president Shain Haug
