Democracy on the Front Lines
City Administrator’s Blog
Walter Denton
September 5, 2007
Over the years, I have often heard complaints about growth in O’Fallon. Some believe it is growing too fast or the new subdivisions all look the same or the growth is spoiling the natural beauty and open space of rural southwestern Illinois. They are responding to two common concerns among fast-growing communities: (1) They want to remain a “small town” and (2) They don’t like farmland being gobbled up by rows and rows of new houses.
I have blogged several times previously about how it is a City Council priority to maintain O’Fallon’s small town feel as the city grows. Last week, the City of O'Fallon sponsored a seminar that addresses the complaint of “cookie cutter” subdivisions and lack of open space. Steven Apfelbaum from Applied Ecological Services presented Conservation Subdivision Design as an alternative to conventional development. The seminar was attended by around 50 people and included citizens, City officials, developers, engineers, and architects.
Conservation subdivisions emphasize natural features and open space and have been described as “golf course communities. . . without the golf course.” Ideally, a conservation design will identify unique, scenic, or significant natural features of a site to be preserved in large contiguous blocks. Homes and lots are then laid out to maximize visual and physical access to the open space by the residents. Homes are often clustered together on smaller lots to allow for better use of the open space. The combined effect of the protected open space and clustered homes results in an average overall density similar to a conventional subdivision. [Click here to read the Conservation Subdivision Design Handbook by Southwestern Illinois Resource Conservation and Development]
As a result, the consultants claim that development costs decrease due to less pavement and storm drainage. In addition, they showed subdivisions in northern Illinois and Wisconsin where smaller lots in conservation subdivision had higher sale prices than equivalently-sized homes in conventional subdivisions with larger lots.
Conservation design makes a lot of sense. The subdivision works with the topography to develop a neighborhood with open space, walking paths, and natural features, instead of the extensive bulldozing and grading of a conventional subdivision. Subdivisions work with the land instead of against it, maintaining the rural feel.
The down side is that there is nothing like this in southwestern Illinois and no one knows whether there is a market for this type of subdivision. In the Midwest, most people equate the value of their home with the size of their lot. If the lot is smaller but the open space is larger, will homebuyers recognize the value added? There is no way to know until a developer tries it.
Developers in O’Fallon have been very successful building good homes in conventional subdivisions. It is natural for them to be hesitant to change a product that has been successful for them. However, it is beneficial to have variety and choices in subdivision design. It will be a risk for the developer who builds the first conservation development in O’Fallon. I believe it would be successful, but it is not my money on the line.
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