Franklin workshop weighs raising building heights at 926 Columbia Avenue

Planning commissioners and members of the Board of Aldermen on Aug. 28 heard a conceptual proposal to amend the Envision Franklin plan to allow taller buildings at 926 Columbia Avenue, including raising the Columbia Avenue frontage from two to three stories and permitting an interior building of four stories.

Planning staff told the joint conceptual workshop that the applicant is seeking three changes to the site's special consideration: increase the allowed height along Columbia Avenue from two to three stories; increase the interior site height from three to four stories; and add a three-story allowance along Plaza Street. Staff said it supports only the Plaza Street change and does not find justification for the other two requests.

The proposed changes would alter how the site transitions to the CAO 2 overlay district to the south, staff said. A planning staff presenter described the project's submitted elevations and expressed concern that a varied first-floor grade produces areas where the building would be taller than adjacent CAO 2 limits: "The submitted materials show a varied First Floor heights ... the First Floor height on the northern side of the building is 29 feet and 10 inches ... which is less than 6 feet below the 2 story height maximum ... which has a maximum height of 35 feet," the staff presenter said, noting portions of the structure could reach roughly 53 feet in total height.

Mike Hathaway, architect with 906 Studio Architects and the applicant's presenter, described the site as "one of the largest leftover spaces in downtown" and outlined a mixed-use plan with a retail-and-residential building facing Columbia Avenue, for-sale townhomes facing Plaza and Folks streets, and a hotel set behind those fronting buildings. Hathaway said the design uses an internal street with on-street parking and an interior paseo for pedestrian access and that some parking would be provided under buildings to reduce surface lots. "We believe that what we're proposing is, very appropriate for this," Hathaway said.

Hathaway identified HG Hill, Dortus Partners and Hori Smith as development partners and said the site drops about 22 feet from one corner to the other; staff and the applicant noted the grade change drives differences in first-floor elevation and perceived building height.

Elected officials and commissioners raised several concerns. Planning Commissioner Roger Lindsay said he was "excited by the opportunity for for sale homes" but added, "I don't love the 4 story hotel," and called for different aesthetics and caution about retail being too close to Columbia Avenue because that could narrow the pedestrian experience. Commissioner Marsha Allen said she was "very surprised and disappointed" that parking was proposed behind the hotel and said the intensity of vehicle movement could affect nearby residents in the Franklin Housing Authority and on Acton Street; she said she was "definitely against that." Alderman Caesar stressed the project's proximity to historic neighborhoods, saying the site offers "an opportunity to do something really, really nice" to honor Natchez Street and noting the area is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Commissioner Williamson, Commissioner Orr and others requested additional studies and design tweaks to reduce perceived massing. Commissioner Orr asked about the sidewalk width on Columbia Avenue; Hathaway answered that the design shows "4 foot planters and a 10 foot sidewalk." Several commissioners and aldermen suggested greater third-floor setbacks or shifting massing away from Columbia to improve the street transition and to soften views from adjacent single-story and historic houses.

Applicants and commissioners discussed context references: Hathaway pointed to the Margin District, where a recessed third story was previously approved, and said the team sees a similar approach as appropriate. When asked about long-term plans for the property behind the site that is controlled by the Franklin Housing Authority, Hathaway said the applicant had "conversations with Scott Blank" (identified in the discussion as the authority's chairman) and that a plan previously on the housing authority website is "no longer accurate" and that he did not believe the authority had an active redevelopment plan for that parcel.

No formal vote or motion was taken at the workshop; staff sought feedback from the commissioners and aldermen. Staff said it will continue to work with the applicant and expects further iterations and materials that respond to height, setback and massing concerns raised during the meeting.

Next steps discussed included additional design studies (particularly rear and neighborhood-facing elevations), options to increase third-story setbacks along Columbia, and more detailed views of how the hotel will be perceived from neighboring properties. The applicant thanked the body for feedback and said the team will return with refinements.

Details from the record: the applicant requested three specific Envision Franklin/special-consideration amendments (Columbia: two→three stories; interior: three→four stories; Plaza Street: add three-story allowance), the northern first-floor elevation shown at 29 feet 10 inches, a nearby CAO 2 overlay district two-story/35-foot maximum cited by staff, and an approximately 22-foot site grade drop. The proposed on-street and internal pedestrian design includes a paseo and an internal street with on-street parking served by underground parking below the Columbia-facing building.

Because the discussion was conceptual, staff and commissioners emphasized design layering—setbacks, articulation and landscaping—rather than immediate approvals.