Planning commission approves design review for 8 homes at St. James Court after weeks of neighborhood objections

The Brentwood Planning Commission on Jan. 21 approved a design review application for eight semi‑custom single-family homes on St. James Court, north of Bristow Middle School, after extended public comment from nearby Carmel Estates residents worried about privacy, drainage and a new brick wall.

Staff presented the project as a long‑entitled subdivision returning to active construction after multiple state and city timing extensions. The application covers eight lots: five single‑story homes and three two‑story homes on a privately maintained street off Minnesota Avenue. The developer, Bianchi Tillett Development, and applicant-builder team said the homes are semi‑custom to meet an original condition that no two homes have the same floor plan.

Neighbors from adjacent Carmel Estates and Randy Way attended in force to oppose the proposed two‑story houses that will back onto their yards. Speakers described grade differences and fill placed on the development site, concerns about sight lines from second‑floor windows, and the visual impact of a new brick wall and retaining system between the properties.

"When you sell a home of this caliber ... you don't get that dollar amount without privacy for the people that you're…