Council approves first reading of Gateway Oasis PDD amendment to convert RV stalls to single-family lots, sets density at 380

Staff and consultant teams presented a companion pair of items amending the Gateway Oasis Planned Development District and its master plan along Speedway Boulevard.

Katie (city planning staff) said the proposed amendment would reassign RV use in Phase 3 to detached single-family residential lots and clarified a residential maximum of 380 units to match the traffic impact analysis. Planning staff also recommended that sign requirements meet overlay standards and that a six-foot opaque privacy fence along the southern property line remain and be extended where applicable.

Connor Blaney (Ward Edwards Engineering) and Caitlin Love (Access Engineering) described open-space updates, pocket-park exhibits, expanded amenity areas and connectivity features such as expanded sidewalks and trails. The consultants said infrastructure is largely in place for the middle phase and that the change would not alter utilities, drainages or access.

Council members pressed for safety reviews at the Highway 17 intersection, questioning sight distance and the safety of left turns from the development onto a 60-mph roadway; the traffic engineer said SCDOT had signed off on sight-distance and that further engineering review will be part of staff sign-off during formal submittal. Council asked staff and the applicant to reevaluate possible safety improvements before the next hearing.

Council moved and seconded the first reading on the ordinance and approved it on first reading; the second reading will be scheduled in two weeks.

The council also approved a related first-reading amendment to the development’s master plan that clarifies unit counts in a companion vote.