Neighboring residents ask commission to reconsider commercial zoning near 699 S. Neber Road over safety and environmental worries

Amber Babich, a resident who lives next to the site proposed for a gas station at 699 South Neber Road, used public comment time Feb. 18 to urge the commission to review commercial zoning rules that allow conditional commercial uses next to residential properties.

Babich said planning staff had been responsive to her concerns but asked the commission to consider a broader overhaul of commercial zoning for residential-adjacent districts. She cited safety guidance suggesting 500 feet between a gas station and residential parcels for emissions and safety reasons, said the Hand Avenue corridor already experiences cut-through traffic and that additional truck and vehicle movement at the proposed site would worsen safety risks. She also raised environmental concerns, noting a nearby environmental center and bird trail and the removal of 13 trees on the proposed site even though new landscaping was planned.

Babich said she had started a petition and collected about 100 signatures from neighbors. She asked that the city weigh residential safety and environmental considerations before permitting the project and said she was formally registering her concerns on the record.

Planning staff and other commissioners acknowledged receipt of written comments and said the planning department had reviewed the application; the meeting record shows staff had given the resident guidance on submittal details. No formal action on the proposed gas station was taken at the Feb. 18 meeting.