Planning commission recommends approval for AmSteel machine shop at 229 Confederate Ave.

The Jasper City Planning Commission voted unanimously Tuesday to recommend that the City Council approve a special-use permit allowing AmSteel LLC to operate a light steel fabrication machine shop at 229 Confederate Avenue in the Mountain City Business Park.

The recommendation came after Nathan Smith, part owner of AmSteel LLC, described the operation as "we lay out where on the column that would go, fit it up, weld it up, put it on a truck, send it to a job site," and city planning staff said the Mountain City Business Park is already home to similar light-industrial and commercial uses and that the site is appropriate for the proposal.

City planning staff told the commission the subject property is about 1.23 acres and contains an approximately 7,000-square-foot office and warehouse building that previously housed an awnings manufacturer. Staff said the C-2 General Commercial District requires a special-use permit for a machine shop because such uses can generate noise, heat, glare or smoke that could exceed ambient conditions; staff recommended approval with seven conditions to limit those impacts.

The conditions the commission approved to forward to the council include limiting the special use to light steel fabrication/machine shop work; prohibiting painting or chemical treating unless a paint booth is approved by the city fire marshal; requiring that outdoor storage be enclosed and screened from public view (AmSteel indicated it will make the existing fence opaque); requiring an accessible parking space and refreshed striping for employee parking; requiring a business license (AmSteel has applied); requiring city-permitted signage; and acknowledging the city's temporary suspension on new water and sewer connections.

Nathan Smith told the commission the company needs three-phase power and that the chosen building provides it; he said AmSteel has sought a roughly 5,000–10,000-square-foot space since last September and expects to hire "2 or 4 people this year," and possibly two employees in the next 30–45 days. Smith said gas cylinders will be secured in dividers and electric welders will be used.

A city planning staff member noted the property is insulated from residential zoning and surrounded by other industrial uses such as auto repair, warehousing and cabinet manufacturing. The staff member said the temporary suspension on new water and sewer connections means the city is not approving any new utility hookups now, but that the building is already served and the proposed use would have minimal water and sewer impacts.

During review commissioners asked whether the existing fire-suppression and ventilation systems were adequate for welding and for any future paint booth; staff said the fire marshal had indicated no changes would be required for the hot work as proposed and that paint booths would require separate fire-marshal approval and ventilation review.

The commission's motion to approve the special-use permit with the seven staff-recommended conditions was made and seconded; the commission voted "aye" and the recommendation will be transmitted to the City Council, which will take the final vote on the permit.

No formal council action was taken at the Planning Commission meeting; the recommendation is advisory and will appear on a future City Council agenda for final decision.