The Warrenton Board of Aldermen nearly dealt a severe setback to a local subdivision builder over concerns about the potential impacts of a high-density development. A rare tie vote left Mayor Eric Schleuter to decide in favor of developer Beckmeyer Construction.

Beckmeyer had already been through months of meetings with city staff, public hearings, plan revisions and delays just to get a vote from the board of aldermen concerning a 35-acre property across the street from Binkley Woods Park. Beckmeyer needed the city government to designate the area as a high-density residential zone before the company can finalize plans for a 97-house subdivision.

Three aldermen opposed the project in an Aug. 2 vote, citing concerns over the use of streets inside and outside the subdivision. Ward 1 Alderman Larry Corder commented that dense lot layouts didn’t leave much room for driveway parking, and predicted that would lead to an overuse of the streets for parking. He also fears the subdivision will cause excessive traffic and damage to Morgan Street, the relatively narrow road that leads to Binkley Woods.

“My concerns are safety with vehicles on the street,” Corder said.

Ward 3 Alderman Bob Delaloye seconded those concerns. He and Corder both said they would prefer to see the subdivision developed with a “medium density” zoning to alleviate their concerns. Delaloye also questioned whether development will worsen water runoff complaints in the area.

“We’re not trying to be difficult here, we’re just trying to make sure, because once it’s in there, we can’t fix it,” Delaloye commented.

Company owner Ben Beckmeyer was vocally frustrated at the prospect of continued delays for his development. He told aldermen that they were wrong if they thought forcing him to develop under medium-density zoning rules would cause him to build fewer houses on larger lots. Rather, he would keep a similar number of lots and just build smaller houses, because that would be the more economical choice for his business.

“I’d rather build bigger ones, but that’s up to you guys,” Beckmeyer told the aldermen.

Ward 3 Alderman Jeff Jaspering came to the defense of the development. He noted that the aldermen’s concerns were over things that are allowed in the city’s code for high-density subdivisions.

“If we go down this road, we’ll open up a can of worms to never rezone anything to (high density),” Jaspering said. 

When the zoning proposal came to a vote, Jaspering voted to approve, along with Ward 2 Aldermen Scott Schulze and Steven Cullom. Corder, Delaloye, and Jack Crump of Ward 1 voted against the rezoning.

That placed the burden on Mayor Eric Schleuter to decide the tie. He approved the rezoning, saying that aldermen might want to change aspects of the city’s zoning codes, but those future changes don’t apply to this project. Schleuter added that the developer had already worked with the city to address any concerns within his control.

“Morgan Street is ours to address as a city, not the developer’s. If that increases traffic ... that’s something that we as a city have to deal with, is our infrastructure,” Schleuter said.