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Council approves conditional rezoning to convert Gabriel Johnston Hotel into nine apartments
Summary
The Town of Smithfield approved a conditional rezoning to allow the historic Gabriel Johnston Hotel at 313 East Johnston Street to be renovated into a nine-unit multifamily building, with conditions including consolidation of parcels, public infrastructure upgrades and Historic Preservation Commission review of any exterior brick painting.
Smithfield town council members approved a conditional rezoning to convert the Gabriel Johnston Hotel at 313 East Johnston Street into a nine-unit multifamily building during a council meeting this evening. The rezoning (CZ-25-02) allows a density of roughly 14 dwelling units per acre on a 0.63-acre site in the historic preservation overlay.
The rezoning is intended to reuse the existing building and its parking area, bring the site into current development standards and return a deteriorated historic structure to productive use downtown. Steven (town planning staff) told the council the project would exceed the 9.61 units-per-acre allowed by right in the zoning code, which is why the developer requested conditional zoning. "The developer is putting significant resources into bringing an old building back to life," Steven said during his presentation.
Staff recommended three conditions and…
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