Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously recommends council reject River Park rezoning

The Planning and Zoning Commission voted unanimously May 15 to recommend the City Council deny a request to rezone four parcels in the River Park development from General Business to R-2, saying the proposal raised unresolved traffic and access concerns.

The vote was 6-0, with Commissioners Megan, Brian, Brooks, Rob, Alyssa and Michael recorded as voting in favor of the motion to recommend denial. The item will be on the City Council agenda Monday as a recommendation only.

Commissioners said their primary concern was that the proposed residential buildings would force commercial traffic — including delivery vehicles and service trucks — to use Riverstone, a street that would be flanked by residential development on both sides under the applicant’s plan. Commissioners also noted the parcel layout leaves the commercial lots to the north dependent on future, separate purchases or agreements to combine parking and driveways; there are currently no recorded easements guaranteeing shared access across the commercial lots.

Jordan Heffner, representing Van Buskirk and identified as the home-building division lead who said he would build the four units, described the proposal as four townhome/fourplex buildings (a total of 16 rental units) sited behind the Holly Boulevard commercial lots and facing south. Heffner said the developer’s intent is that the commercial parking areas along Holly would eventually be combined and provide multiple access points, but he acknowledged there are no signed contracts or recorded easements guaranteeing that outcome.

Staff member Patrick said the change before the commission is a rezone request and not a preliminary plat or final site plan; rezoning would only assign R-2 zoning to the four tracts and would not require the developer to build the plan shown to the commission. Patrick also explained that tabling would require renoticing a public hearing before the City Council.

Commissioners pressed for specifics including driveway locations, whether the businesses would be fronting Holly Boulevard, and whether the 40-foot access between two of the R-2 lots provided sufficient maneuvering room for commercial vehicles. One commissioner cited a section of the municipal code that prohibits parking within setbacks (quoted in the meeting as 15153.2), noting that the net usable width for access could be constrained after applying required setbacks.

Heffner said his division’s timeline called for starting construction July 1 with the aim of occupying the units between late 2025 and mid-February 2026, but he said the commercial lots to the north remain for sale and that intended shared parking and multiple driveways could not be guaranteed absent future agreements or consolidated development. He also said Van Buskirk has used similar arrangements in other communities, citing an example in Harrisburg where cross-parking between commercial parcels ties into residential roads, but he acknowledged that River Park’s layout differs and could present conflicts.

The commission’s motion, seconded during the meeting, directed staff to forward a recommendation against the rezone to the City Council. The record shows the commission’s action is advisory; the council retains final authority to approve or overturn the recommendation.

The commission did not adopt site-specific conditions because a rezoning cannot be conditioned on design elements, staff reminded commissioners.

The commission’s recommendation will go to the City Council with the record from this hearing. The council meeting is the next step in the process and could approve, modify or reject the rezone despite the planning commission’s recommendation.