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Live Oak council approves two Duval Street zoning changes amid resident concerns
Summary
On final readings the council approved zone changes for properties at 514 Duval Street NW and 704 Duval Street NE to Residential Office, allowing duplexes or similar small multi-unit development; residents raised concerns about crowding, traffic and impacts to historic homes.
The City Council of the City of Live Oak approved final readings of two zoning changes — application LER 24-09 (514 Duval Street NW) and LDR 25-01 (704 Duval Street NE) — to reclassify the properties to the Residential Office (RO) zoning district.
George Curtis, development manager for the City of Live Oak, said both items had come before the Planning and Zoning Board, which recommended approval, and had passed first reading at a prior council meeting. "The applicant did meet the criteria, to justify those building change on the land use that's there...so we'll pass recommendations approval," Curtis said about the 514 Duval application. For the 704 Duval property, Curtis said the applicant had pulled a demolition permit for the existing home and intended to build one duplex.
Public comment included residents who both welcomed neighborhood improvement and pressed concerns about scale. Christopher Gonzales, who spoke for his family, said, "We just wanted to say thank you for for the opportunity to be able to stand, like, be able to develop." Other residents questioned lot sizes and traffic. Lynn Sweat asked for clarification about parcel size and the number of units, saying, "From what I'm reading here, correct me if I'm wrong, this is only, like, a half an acre. Is this correct? And if so, are we talking about 4 homes put on this 1 piece of property plus the 1 that's already on it?"
Several speakers urged caution to preserve older houses in the neighborhood and said access (two roads in, two roads out for parts of the area) could complicate increased density. One commenter said the surrounding area included historic homes and that additional development could change the neighborhood character.
Councilmembers moved to adopt the zoning changes on final reading. For the 514 Duval application, staff reported no letters in opposition that the city was aware of. The council approved both zone changes on final reading and directed staff to proceed with standard zoning and permitting processes for each site.
The approvals change the zoning classification to Residential Office (RO), which allows small multi-unit configurations such as duplexes where compatible with the land development regulations. The council did not attach additional conditions beyond standard development review for the parcels.
