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Board sets public hearing for 311-acre Hillview Lane annexation and hillside overlay after residents speak
Summary
The board voted 7–1 to set a June 24 public hearing on annexing 311.21 acres west of Hillview Lane and to zone the parcel to a planned PD with a Hillside Overlay; residents urged protections for tree canopy, a historic cemetery and limits on sidewalk impacts.
The Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted 7–1 to schedule a public hearing June 24 on a proposed annexation and zoning of about 311.21 acres west of Hillview Lane, including a request to apply a Hillside Overlay District.
City staff said the resolution (Resolution 2025-25) and the first reading of the ordinance (Ordinance 2025-O-6) will initiate the annexation and map the property into a planned PD district with a Hillside Overlay, and they noted the material will return for formal public hearings and additional readings. The board’s action moves the matters to a formal public-hearing process rather than adopting final zoning at this meeting.
Several Hillview Lane residents addressed the board during the comment period. Christina Garner told the board that photographs used in project presentations did not reflect conditions along her property and warned that taking roadside space for sidewalks would “chop down all the trees in front of their house.” Emily McGinn asked the board to “please leave Hillview Lane out of the equation,” citing a historic slave cemetery and a long tree canopy along the lane; she also questioned how a sidewalk could be built where there are steep ditches and hillsides. Rob Dodson pointed out the irony of the item appearing during National Preservation Month and urged the board to consider place-based preservation.
Board members acknowledged resident concerns during debate. Alderman Barnhill and others said voting to set the public hearing should not be read as final approval of the annexation or zoning; several members urged the applicant to return with revisions addressing neighborhood comments. Vice Mayor Potts said annexation offers an opportunity to apply the Hillside Overlay to protect hilltops and tree cover on the property’s south edge.
The motions to set the public hearing passed on first-reading votes 7–1; Alderman Caesar cast the lone no vote. The first reading of the ordinance to zone the property to Planned PD and Hillside Overlay likewise passed 7–1. The items will return to the board for additional readings and the scheduled public hearing on June 24, 2025.
