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Commission delays Skyland rezoning after commissioners press developer on relocation plan
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Summary
The Zoning Commission postponed final action on the Skyland Place rezoning to allow the applicant to provide detailed relocation information after commissioners raised concerns that the current plan could cause resident displacement.
The Zoning Commission postponed final action on Skyland Place LLC’s map amendment (Case No. 24‑07) and requested additional relocation detail from the applicant, after commissioners said the redevelopment’s relocation strategy, as written, risks displacing existing residents.
Commissioner Wright pressed the applicant and record on the plan’s feasibility. Quoting the relocation plan, Wright recited its approach to phased relocation and said the plan calls for temporarily relocating “a select number of residents” from 68 existing units to on‑site vacant units during Phase 1, then returning residents to new units when construction phases are complete. She said that, given the current occupancy patterns and unit counts on the property, that approach appears unrealistic and could require a 30–50% vacancy rate on remaining housing to succeed.
Wright said: “I just don’t think it’s realistic that they’re going to be able to move 68 units on‑site,” and that the plan’s repeated assertions that Phase 1 residents can be relocated on‑site “is almost impossible to implement” without external vacancies or secured off‑site units. She said the concern implicates the Comprehensive Plan’s racial equity and anti‑displacement policies.
Vice Chair Miller, Commissioner Stidham and others agreed the map amendment’s land‑use merits are broadly consistent with the Comprehensive Plan but urged the applicant—Enterprise and Skyland Place LLC—to provide concrete evidence that no one will be displaced. Miller recommended the applicant provide additional details on off‑site options or demonstrate how on‑site relocation could be accomplished.
The commission set a procedural schedule: the applicant was asked to file additional relocation details by 3 p.m. on Feb. 13; any party may file a response by 3 p.m. on Feb. 20; the matter will be scheduled for the commission’s Feb. 27 meeting for further consideration. The ANC (8B) had asked for postponement to allow a newly sworn commissioner to review materials; the commission’s procedural order follows that request and the commissioners’ substantive concerns.
No final vote was taken on the rezoning at the hearing; the commission recorded the postponement and directed the Office of Zoning to docket any submissions.
