Bartering for taller buildings
City may loosen restrictions on downtown development

By Josh Spilker

If the city's proposed public benefit matrix goes forward, five parking spaces could be worth 24 more feet of building reaching toward the sky above downtown Wilmington.

The city is nearing completion of a revision of the land development code for the Central Business District (CBD) that could provide height restriction exceptions or increased residential density for developers willing to factor public benefit into their projects.

One change in the latest draft of the code from March 25 is the expanded public benefits matrix, which allows additional building heights and increased residential density if certain public benefit features are incorporated within the structure.

"These benefits are desirable in order to help achieve the goal of con tinuing to develop a CBD and riverfront that are accessible to a diversity of citizens, as a place to live, recreate, and shop," said Kay Graybeale, the planning director for the City of Wilmington. "These benefits also enhance downtown as a work environment."

Carried over from the current code are incentives in public green space and non-residential street level commercial fronts. New public benefits recommended include green building techniques, restoration and preservation of historic contributing structures, and other amenities installed by developers like on-site child care and even a locker room and showers for employees who bike to work.

"The justification for the new opportunities for providing benefits for height and density bonuses is based on best management practices espoused by the planning profession," Graybeale said. "Those of protecting the resources in the natural environment, preserving the resources of the historic built environment, and ensuring the quality of any newly created environment."

An encouraging step
"It's a great start. The public benefits matrix is something the city wants to see, and it's something we can absolutely benefit from," said David Spetrino, president of Plantation Building Corp. that builds heavily in the CBD. Spetrino mentioned that he has already included wireless Internet access in some of his buildings, which is part of the new public benefits matrix.

Historic district groups also appreciate the effort the city has made in encouraging public benefits.

"We like what they're doing in encouraging green space," said Kevin O'Grady, president of Residents of Old Wilmington (ROW).

Height restrictions will now be in three ranges: a minimum, by right, and maximum height. The by right height can be expanded to the maximum height by the use of the public benefits matrix.

"We are willing to withstand some more height, if there is something we can get back," Graybeale said.

Skyline struggles
John Hinnant, of Wilmington Downtown Inc., believes the fifty-foot by right height changes proposed for parts of Front Street could inhibit the city's skyline.

"I'd like to see a modern building mirror the Murchison building," Hinnant said. The Murchison Building is about 140 feet tall from Front Street to the roofline, according to Lance Agin with Ziff Properties, the management company of the Murchison Building. A new building along Front Street in that part of downtown could only have a maximum height of 100 feet, if the new regulations go into effect. Facing Water Street or along Second Avenue, the buildings could have a maximum height of 132 feet.

The View condominiums along Front Street that extend to Water Street will be about 100 feet, according to Brian Agee, the director of sales for The View.

The current height restrictions are dictated by distance from the river and dependent on the closest building's elevation. The new proposal looks to unify the code by establishing block by block height changes, that also preserves the character and look of the historic district.

"One of the distinguishing features of the city, is the riverfront, and the ability to see the river," said George Edwards, director of the Historic Wilmington Foundation. "If you build high buildings on the river, you will block everyone else from seeing the river, and it will feel more sealed off."

Balancing act
Developer Todd Toconis who owns properties downtown sees the height limits as a detriment to property owners.

"I would go back to the ordinance before this one, where there were no height limits," Toconis said. "As a builder you almost have to go up significantly higher to recoup costs."

"I still don't understand why there is a height limit. I'm not sure what the reasoning is, especially on the northern part (of downtown)," Spetrino said. "We should also be grateful to have tall buildings coming on the north side, that means we have a flourishing downtown, with benefits for everyone."

Parking is still an issue for ROW, according to O'Grady. Structured public parking is considered a public benefit under the proposed matrix.

"The one thing that we are very unhappy with is the failure to consider parking and we find that a real shortcoming," O'Grady said. "The residential developers have basically said they will provide their own parking. The commercial developers have basically refused, that it's not their job to provide parking. And I think that's a shortcoming."

Spetrino still has some issues with not allowing ground-floor residential and encroaching provisions in the proposed code, but overall believes the current draft of the code will work.

"We are better off with these new regulations, than we were with the previous one," Spetrino said.

O'Grady also recognizes the hard work that the planning commission has done. "We are pretty supportive of what the staff has done here," O'Grady said. "We like what they're doing in portions of the new development code, in the more historic part of downtown."

According to Graybeal, changes will be finalized and recommended to the Planning Commission by June. The changes should reach the City Council by July.

The CBD ranges on the south end from one block of Nun and Water streets and adjacent to the river and stretches just past the intersection of First and Third on the north end.