Michael Augustides, architect and project director for Vocon, and developer Nick Cardianos presented concept drawings for a four-story, mixed-use building at the corner of Warrensville Center Road and Hillbrook Road during a discussion-only agenda item. The presentation and public comment focused on compliance with a draft zoning code, building height and massing, parking counts, stormwater control and neighborhood impacts.

The proposal covers four parcels the developer controls and envisions a roughly 36,000-square-foot building with 36 residential units and approximately 1,800 square feet of ground-floor retail. Augustides said the unit mix includes 11 one-bedroom units, 10 one-bedroom-plus-den units and 15 two-bedroom units, and that the design provides 57 parking spaces, including ADA spaces; the draft zoning code’s minimums were described in the presentation as 44 spaces for the residential component and six for retail.

Several commissioners, including the chair of the economic development committee, raised zoning questions. The committee chair said the northern parcels fall inside the “Warrensville Center mixed-use” subarea while the south parcels fall in a “Warrensville Center residential” subarea under the draft code; he urged the team to apply the more restrictive residential matrix on the southern parcels and to address what the code intends for a 3.5‑story residential appearance rather than a visible four full stories from the street. He flagged parking counts, saying the current layout shows 48 spaces in the rear and could be short two spaces under one reading of the draft; he also suggested design changes such as tucking a fourth floor into the roof or reducing side setbacks to preserve unit counts without exceeding allowed height.

Neighbors voiced concerns in public comment. Patrick Coburn and Deborah Newman, both Meadowbrook residents, said stormwater and runoff into existing backyards are a serious worry and asked for assurances that on-site retention would prevent increased discharge to adjacent properties. Augustides and the developer said the project would include underground stormwater-retention infrastructure and that grades and curbs would be designed so the site “retains all of its stormwater” and does not make neighboring conditions worse. Neighbors also cited privacy and visual impacts from a four-story façade on the downhill slope and the potential for retail vacancies if ground-floor space is mandated.

Other residents and speakers urged the city to revisit parking minimums in the draft code and to consider flexible approaches such as reduced parking minimums, shared off-site parking arrangements (John Carroll University parking was discussed as a potential regional resource), or design changes that add green space and buffers rather than placing parking adjacent to rear property lines. A resident urged that liquor sales be restricted at any retail tenant to avoid a late-night bar at the corner.

Commissioners and staff clarified several procedural points: the zoning code is a draft under committee review and not yet adopted; this was a conceptual review and no action was taken; the commission chair and staff said public hearings on the draft code are expected before the end of the year and that developers and neighbors will have further opportunities to comment.

The presentation ended with the developer noting they would return after considering feedback; options discussed included reducing the building height to avoid a fourth visible story, removing or reducing the retail component to increase residential units, and reworking the parking layout to increase buffers from adjacent single-family yards. No formal zoning or plan approvals were sought at this meeting.