Planning Commission OKs Marmaduke Estates

Thursday, September 16, 2004

By Ralph Pokorny

Nevada Daily Mail

Tuesday night the Nevada Planning Commission gave its blessing to Phase 1 of the Marmaduke Estates housing development.

The commission voted 6-0-1, with Amy Henry abstaining because of a conflict of interest, to recommend that the Nevada City Council approve the final plat and the development agreement for the first phase of this housing development.

The property, owned by Carol and Roger Irvin and Terry and Dixie Hoeper, is located just west of Marmaduke Park, on about 10 acres of a 50 acre tract of land that the city gave to Acorn Televillages in the mid-1990s to build a housing development designed for people doing business from home using high-speed Internet access.

The development includes the two houses that Acorn Televillages started to build.

The property is part of about 700 acres the state of Missouri gave to Nevada when they closed the Nevada State Hospital.

Ron Clow told the commission that the major change in the plat and the development agreement since they last looked it over are changes in the streets.

"The major changes will be to construct the streets to city standards with curbs and guttering," Ron Clow, building inspector, told the commission.

Clow told the commission that the city council is in the process of updating the city's requirements for new streets and sidewalks.

"All of the curb and guttering will be installed after the construction is complete so the construction equipment working on the site won't damage the new curbing," said Terry Hoeper, part owner of Marmaduke Estates.

Clow told the commission that the developers plan to re-plat the remainder of the property as the project moves along.

In other business, the commission voted to adopt a resolution recommending the city council approve the five-year capitol improvement the commission is sending to them.

The budget includes about $5.75 million to be spent over the next five years on upgrading the city's sewer treatment plant as well as construction of new sewers lines; $400,000 per year of street construction and $260,400 in work in the city parks.

The projects in this budget are all paid for with earmarked sales taxes.

The $260,4000 for the city parks is last of the money raised by the one-half cent sales park and recreation sales tax, which has been used to renovating Radio Springs Park, the new senior center, the swimming pool expansion as well as other construction in the parks over the last four years.

The park's sales tax expires next and the park board is currently deciding when to ask Nevada voters to renew the sales tax to fund a new multi-year capitol improvement program.

If the park and recreation sales tax is not renewed in 2006 the parks property tax levy will be reinstated.

The property tax generates about $180,000 per year versus the estimated $400,000 generated by a one-half cent sales tax.

If the sales tax is renewed the property tax will not be reinstated.

Respond to this story

Posting a comment requires free registration: