BURLINGTON — It's called “Open Space Development,” but the lots are smaller.

        Proposed new Boone County zoning regulations may make it easier for builders to develop these new types of neighborhoods, which preserve large chunks of green space.

        Open-space development zoning permits cluster housing, said Kevin Costello, executive director of the Boone County Planning Commission.

        Instead of building on the currently zoned two-acre lots, the homes could be built on 1/2-acre lots with small yards. A common green area would be created in the development, preserving some of the natural resources.
       

Pooling green space

        “You cluster the development so you could have a situation where 60 percent of the site is open space,” said Dan Dressman, executive vice president of the Northern Kentucky Home Builders Association.

        “You're pulling all of the green space together,” Mr. Costello said.

        This type of development is allowable now in Boone County, but the planning commission reviews each individual request and can deny the development at its discretion.

        “You can do it now but you have to jump through more hurdles to get it done because it's not in the traditional zoning,” Mr. Dressman said. Putting it in the zoning ordinances would allow developers to build open-space developments without individual permission.
       

Changing rules

        Mike Kegley, owner of BOLD Homes in Florence and a member of the Home Builders Association, is building an open-space development on Rice Pike near Ryle High School under the current zoning regulations.

        “We were somewhat limited to meet the minimal sizes,” he said. “We couldn't save some of the natural resources. We were required to have longer lots,” Mr. Kegley said.

        “Therefore the street had to be longer, and we had to knock down a few extra trees.”

        Houses in Estates at Union Reserves start at $300,000. The average home goes for $425,000. There will be 23 house in the development.

        Deanna Dragan, 30, of Union is thinking about buying there. “We like it because it's quiet,” she said. “You can hear the birds and the crickets.”

        She likes the common area.

        “It's hard when you first move into a subdivision when you don't know anybody.”

A growing county

        In the proposed new zoning, “We are amending our regulations where this could be done in any type of residential zone or agriculture zone in our community,” said Mr. Costello, adding that he foresees it mostly being done in rural areas.

        The benefit to the county of this zoning is that “it's a different alternative to the traditional type of subdivision,” said Mr. Costello, adding that it provides more open space in the rapidly growing county.

        The 2000 U.S. Census data shows Boone County was the fastest-growing county in Greater Cincinnati and the second-fastest-growing county in Kentucky behind Spencer County.

        Now the eighth-largest county in the state, Boone County grew to 85,991 in 2000 from 57,589 in 1990, a 49.3 percent increase.

        With the influx of people comes pressure on farmland and open spaces. The amount of farmland in Boone declined by nearly half from 1960 to 1997, according to U.S. Census data. In 1960, 26 percent of the county's residents lived in rural areas, while in 2000, that number had shrunk to 2.6 percent.

        Developers and planners say the traffic created by open-space development is the same or less as it would be in another subdivision because it's still about the same number of homes, if not fewer.
       

Little yard, little work

        Mr. Kegley said the planning commission suggested building the homes on 20,000-square-foot lots. The association suggested making it 15,000-square-foot lots.

        Houses built on these small lots could have first floors as big as 2,200-square-feet. Mr. Kegley said the association suggested a 30-foot setback from the street or property line on a lot this size.

        Mr. Dressman said a homeowners association would be created in an open-space development. Each homeowner would pay dues to be used toward the maintenance of the common area.

        The Home Builders Association suggested the zoning regulations allow the common area to be leased out for crops, a horse pasture or something similar.

        “They ought to have the option to do that to offset the cost of maintenance the homeowners are going to incur.”

        If the green space is not leased out, it could be used for walking trails, recreation or a pond, Mr. Dressman said, adding that it might not be developed at all.

        Mr. Costello said the planning commission was very open to the suggestions. “Our staff is in the process of evaluating the impact of those changes.”

        Mr. Dressman said this type of development is in demand. “People are saying they want a larger home on a smaller lot,” he said, adding that people don't want to maintain the yard.

        “Typically it's singles or people that are downsizing. Typically the homes tend to be a little more expensive,” he added.

        There will be a public hearing about the zoning amendment 6:30 p.m. May 1 at Conner Middle School. The planning commission is expected to vote on it in May or June.

        If the measure passes, it will be sent to the Boone County Fiscal Court and the Union, Walton and Florence City Councils for approval. All four entities must approve it for the amendment to be added to the zoning ordinances.
       

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