By Bill Short
The Millington Municipal Planning Commission has approved design and engineering plats submitted for construction of the Northpointe Farms residential subdivision.
Commission members took the actions on separate motions during their Aug. 19 regular monthly meeting.
Each motion was passed by five affirmative votes, with Brenda Barber and Mayor Terry Jones absent.
Charles Goforth, planning consultant for the city, said the subdivision will include 171 lots on 53 acres north of Shipp Road and east of the Crosspointe Baptist Church.
At its meeting in December 2018, the commission unanimously approved an application from developer Charles Ennis to have all of the property re-zoned from R-1, Low-Density, to R-2, Medium-Density Residential.
But Goforth recommended that the top 600 feet remain zoned as R-1. Citing the “rationale” for that, he said it is enough for two streets and four rows of lots that will be a “buffer to the north.”
Goforth has noted that R-1 zoning requires an 80-foot-wide lot with a minimum of 10,000 square feet. R-2 has a 65-foot-wide lot with a minimum of 6,500 square feet.
At its Feb. 11 meeting, the Millington Board of Mayor and Aldermen passed an ordinance on final reading that re-zoned the property in accordance with Goforth’s recommendation. The ordinance was unanimously passed on first reading after a public hearing at the board’s Jan. 14 meeting.
Goforth has noted that the lots will be larger than those in Jordan’s Crossing, the property to the south that is zoned R-3 for Planned Development.
“But we want to step it up as we go north,” he has acknowledged, “and we don’t want to have all the same size lots available. We want some larger lots, too.”
Because of the large number of lots in the new subdivision, Goforth said the Design Plat provides “two ways in and out” off of Shipp Road.
At his request, the developer will provide a 60-foot-wide north/south “collector” road called Curtain Drive.
The commission approved the Design Plat with the following conditions:
(1) Easements must be obtained from the owner south of the Shipp Road extension for road grading, storm drainage improvements and drainage outflow to the storm water basin.
(2) The Plat must indicate how the storm water retention will be provided on portions of the subdivision that do not drain to the storm water basin.
(3) All sidewalks must be 5 feet wide, with the area indicated as “common open space” included on Lot 32 as an easement.
(4) The developer must agree to participate financially with the city in constructing a new road from Shipp to Veterans Parkway by paying half of the construction cost.
In response to a question by commission member Mike Caruthers, Goforth said he thinks the “probability” of getting the road constructed is “pretty good.”
“In dealing with the owner, we may have to modify the alignment a little bit,” he acknowledged. “But as long as it’s reasonable, and he’s the one who has the property, we’ll try to work that out.”
The developer also submitted a Phase I Engineering Plat for the first 62 lots on 18 acres.
Goforth said Curtain Drive will extend along the west side of the property. A “temporary turnaround” will be installed at the end of it, because that street will be continued in the future.
He noted that another street will come in from the east, and a 1.43-acre storm water basin will be constructed at the southeast corner of it.
The commission approved the Engineering Plat for Phase I with the following conditions:
(1) The temporary turnaround can be constructed with gravel, but it must be 100 feet in diameter.
(2) The existing Shipp Road improvements must be shown on the plans where new roads will be tied into the existing roadway.
(3) All proposed street names must be “coordinated” with Memphis Light, Gas & Water to avoid duplications.
(4) Plans must be revised to incorporate the water and sewer comments and “marked-up” drawings that have been provided to the engineer.
(5) The existing pavement and curb on Shipp Road must be shown on the south side of the site.
(6) Pavement must be added to the plans that will be part of this project on the north side of existing Shipp Road.
(7) A drainage easement must be obtained for the city to maintain construction on the drainage to the east and south sides of Shipp Road and the property line.
(8) A construction easement must be obtained from the adjacent owner for the drainage pipe to the east and south of Shipp Road.
(9) To meet the requirements of the National Fire Protection Association, there must be 26 feet of pavement on Shipp Road.
The commission also approved a $2,251,205 bond for the project.
