Commission recommends rezoning for former police site to allow one-story restaurant and passive park

The Homewood Planning Commission on July 2025 approved a resurvey and voted 6-0 to recommend rezoning of the former Homewood Police Department site to allow a one-story restaurant with a passive public park on the remainder of the parcel. The commission’s positive recommendation on rezoning will be transmitted to the City Council for final approval.

Developer Michael Moran, joined by Michael Schaus of Chambliss King Architects, described the plan to convert the former police site into a first-class restaurant with roughly two-thirds of the site set aside as a passive public park. "This was my attempt to try to customize a development to fit what I understood to be the majority of the city's wishes," Moran said, noting the city’s prior interest in downtown green space. Moran told the commission the City Council previously approved the sale of the property by a 9-2 vote.

The applicants described operational details including a single-story building, uncovered and covered outdoor dining, and a valet plan. Moran said the team has a verbal parking arrangement with the Aloft hotel to use the hotel’s upper deck for valet parking but acknowledged that the parties had not yet executed a formal agreement. He said the restaurant expects heavier activity at night and described the outdoor dining area as having low vegetation and hedging to provide a visual and acoustic buffer between diners and the adjacent pocket park.

City staff explained that the proposed zoning classification (C-4) permits uses such as food and beverage (no drive-through), general retail, health and fitness studios, medical clinics and certain office uses; staff also said the rezone is generally compatible with the adopted mixed-use land-use plan for the corridor. Staff noted that the city sent notices to all property owners within 500 feet and received one email in support from a condominium resident; there were no expressions of opposition at the hearing.

The commission first approved the resurvey (RS250704) by voice/roll call, then moved to recommend the rezone (RZ250705) to City Council. Roll-call votes for both the resurvey and the rezone recommendation recorded yes votes from Commissioners Broadhead, Gulas, Andress, Armstead, Wilcutt and Roberts; both actions passed 6-0. The rezoning recommendation is advisory; City Council will take the final vote.

Next steps discussed at the meeting include the developer securing formal valet/parking agreements and preparing detailed development plans and permit applications to return to staff and, if required, to the commission or council for additional approvals.