After two years of negotiations, public hearings and piles of planning, the Lakepointe Urban Village development agreement ordinance received a unanimous thumbs up from the Covington City Council Tuesday.

The Lakepointe development is located off state Route 18 on the Lakeside Gravel Mine area. It has often been referred to as the Hawk Property, because five of the parcels are owned by the Hughes and Hawk families. The sixth parcel is owned by Oakpointe Land Covington. Oakpointe is part of YarrowBay Holdings, a Kirkland commercial and retail development firm, that is planning the project. The size of the property is about 214 acres in the north section of Covington.

A public hearing was the main event of the evening at the April 11 City Council meeting.

The council members took public testimony on the proposed development agreement ordinances for Lakepointe.

The members were briefed by Covington Community Development Director Richard Hart, the Lakepointe Director of Development Colin Lund and about 14 residents.

Hart outlined the project and the ordinances noting the site is currently an asphalt batch plant.

“The whole process to get to this point has gone on for about five years, from 2012, the Hawk subarea plan and planned action ordinance, completed several years later in 2014,” Hart said.

Planning for the site began in 2013. In November 2016 Oakpointe representatives submitted development agreement applications. The applications were reviewed by the Planning Commission and forwarded to the City Council with a recommendation to approve.

The commercial development in Lakepointe is projected to include 850,000 square feet of retail, hotel and office space including retail centers. The residential plan is for 1,500 homes. There is a 20-acre lake on the property. The plan on the Lakepointe website said there will be a “peninsula extending into the lake – that includes retails shops, restaurants, residential homes and pavilion park – is the centerpiece of activity.”

Hart said the zoning code amendments, which is part of the development agreement ordinances, “included adding three new zoning district categories: mixed residential, MR; regional commercial mixed use, RCMU; R-12, high density residential.”

The advantages of a development agreement for the city was outlined by Hart. He noted the agreement was a contract between Lakepointe and the city lasting for 15 years plus a five year extension.

“It gives certainty and flexibility to both parties and the public,” Hart said. “It specifies the specific timing and installation of improvements. It also outlines the obligations for both parties.”

Hart also pointed out the agreement can only be changed by the City Council after a public hearing and it provides the city with more authority over the project during the life of the contract.

Lakepointe representatives held a open house in January when several issues were raised by residents concerning the development. Also the public testimony during the April 11 City Council meeting along with emails and letters received during the Planning Commission meetings raised concerns by some neighbors and residents.

Three of the main issues were a hotel proposed on the south border of the property, tree buffers and traffic.

At the April 11 public hearing Sheryl Ward said, “I am one of the unfortunate people that live in the south corner that is negatively impacted by Lakepointe. We would actually like it to stay zoned mineral and actually not developed at all. That would be the ideal.”

Ward also said she was concerned about more traffic impacting her neighborhood.

Matt Kellner questioned whether the traffic studies were current and addressed the congestion on Kent Kangley and in the neighborhoods.

Following the April 11 public hearing the council asked staff to provide more detail on issues raised at the hearing by the public.

At the council meeting April 25 Hart said Lakepointe was paying traffic impact fees. He also pointed out the state provided $40 million for the Covington Connector bypass from Kent Kangley/SR 516 to SR 18, which will help mitigate the existing congestion on Kent Kangley and the increase in traffic from Lakepointe.

Hart said Kent Kangley was already failing in terms of congestion and the bypass will help that problem. The state and the developer will pay for the Covington Connector.

The zoning for the southern area is RCMU, which allows hotels and movie theaters. The developer has agreed to a 70 foot tree buffer. If a hotel is placed on the site, Lund said there will be no balconies facing the neighborhoods and access to the rooms will only be from inside the building.

At the meeting both Mayor Pro Tem Sean Smith and Mark Lanza espressed some reservations about certain aspects of the development.

Lanza and Smith said they had concerns about the hotel. Smith was concerned about all the agreements being completed as stated in the contract. Despite reservation they both felt the developer answered the issues raised and each voted for the development agreement.

Councilwoman Marlla Mhoon said the community was gaining “so much from this development agreement.” She also said she felt the hotel would be an excellent neighbor after she at times has lived next to barking dogs, screaming neighbors and teenage parties.