Zoning committee rezones Drury's site for housing, clears Sherman duplex lots and forwards low-barrier intake center—debate continues on solar and location

The Zoning & Annexation Committee advanced three separate land-use items to the Committee of the Whole or full council, including a rezoning of the former Drury's Brewery site to allow residential redevelopment, a lot-line and zoning realignment on Sherman Avenue to permit additional duplex construction, and a rezoning and use-variance for a proposed low-barrier intake center at 4022 Old Cleveland Road.

Skip Morrell, principal development planner, told the committee the cleared Drury's site (acquired by the city after years of neglect) no longer fits industrial zoning and staff recommends rezoning the site to U3 (urban neighborhood) to enable a range of housing types. Morrell described the site's EPA-led cleanup and subsequent city remediation phases and noted the site is roughly 14 acres after demolition and soil work. The committee voted to send Bill 1-25 to the Committee of the Whole with a favorable recommendation (five ayes, one nay).

A separate request for 616 Sherman Avenue would return a parcel to U2 (urban neighborhood 2) to avoid split zoning as lot lines are realigned to accommodate additional duplexes. The plan commission recommended approval and the committee moved Bill 2-25 to the council with a favorable recommendation.

The committee also considered Bill 3-25, a request to rezone 4022 Old Cleveland Road from industrial to S2 (Suburban Neighborhood 2) and a development variance to allow a group residence at that site. Staff described the location as adjacent to existing reentry and services sites and not directly adjacent to schools or parks; proponents said services would be provided on-site and access to transit is available. Proponents described the facility as a low-barrier intake center designed to provide immediate shelter and on-site supportive services so guests can be connected to longer-term housing. After public comment and discussion, the committee voted to forward Bill 3-25 with a favorable recommendation to the Committee of the Whole; the committee vote recorded five ayes and one nay (citizen member Henry Davis Jr. cast the lone no vote).

Public comment at the zoning committee included a resident urging staff and councilors to continue conversation about a separate proposal to use parts of the Drury's site for a solar microgrid or community-solar project. Jordan Geiger, a neighborhood resident, said federal funding was available for a microgrid sized to serve a few hundred homes and asked staff to keep the option on the table. Caleb Bauer, executive director of Community Investment, replied that community-scale solar or microgrid concepts had been discussed but that the Drury's acreage in question is limited for utility-scale community solar sizes and that residential solar or smaller arrays might still be feasible; he said the city would follow up and continue the conversation.

Committee members asked staff to continue outreach and follow-up; several members said they wanted the solar conversation to continue in parallel with zoning work. The three bills were advanced as described; each will be on a council agenda for further consideration.