Merced City Council delays apartment complex plan

After hearing protests Monday from more than a dozen residents who live near a proposed apartment complex, the Merced City Council delayed the plans and asked developers to return with a smaller project.

The council voted unanimously to have CWN Development, a company based in Boca Raton, Fla., return to a future meeting with significant changes to a proposed 432-unit complex in north Merced called the Bellevue Ranch Apartments.

Several of the local homeowners described the project as “a beast” that could snarl traffic in the area and affect home values. They also expressed concerns with the project because it would attract renters rather than owners to the area.

The project is proposed for an area bounded by M Street Circle, Mandeville Lane and Barclay Way. The two parcels of land, which are on either side of Bancroft Drive, make up more than 20 acres, according to city records.

The site was proposed to have 882 parking spots, which is more than was required by the city, but the three-story complex has the potential to house 1,696 people.

“The congestion there is going to be crazy,” said Steve Gutierrez, who lives on Barclay Way.

The neighborhood already has too many cars, he said, and it’s difficult to find parking when he gets home from work. Gutierrez said he grew up in south Merced and moved to get away from apartments and congestion.

The plan proposed to the council included eight buildings on each of the two parcels. The units inside would have one to four rooms, each with its own bathroom.

Another nearby resident, Brenda Tovar, said she’s seen enough ups and downs in Merced’s housing market. She said she is concerned that her home value would drop with a large complex built nearby.

“We did not leave the area when our homes were underwater and we lost so much money,” she said. “One of the reasons we stayed there was because we wanted somewhere safe to raise our families.”

Merced County’s housing market was hit particularly hard by the Great Recession and the housing market crash of the past decade. Some homeowners saw their home values cut in half.

The apartments project was originally approved in 2008 for condominiums. Tovar and a number of other homeowners at the meeting said condos would be more desirable, because they would require the tenants to be owners and not renters.

The city’s plan for the area designates that the two parcels and others nearby are zoned for multifamily housing, which includes apartments or condos, according to the city’s staff. A transportation center that would allow for bus stops is also part of the plan.

The developer would be required to make a number of improvements, including widening Bellevue Road in the area. Forty units were also designated as affordable for low-income families, according to records.

The discussion during the meeting became emotional at times, with the audience shouting out their thoughts to the council. Mayor Stan Thurston had to call for order several times.

The council said the project would not gain approval as it stood, and asked the developer to figure out a smaller project. Thurston called the proposed project “too ambitious,” and noted that the city’s Planning Commission voted to deny the plans.

“It’s a good project in the wrong place,” he said.

This story was originally published July 7, 2015 at 6:13 PM with the headline "Merced City Council delays apartment complex plan."