Harahan residents spoke in large numbers against a rezoning request for 2112 Hickory Avenue, and the City Council voted to deny the change after a lengthy public comment period.

Residents said the block is residential in character, cited traffic and parking congestion along Hickory Avenue and Generis Drive, and raised flood and drainage worries if additional commercial uses were permitted. Multiple speakers said previous rezoning requests on the same block had been repeatedly rejected and said approval would set a precedent allowing further spot zoning on nearby residential streets.

Speakers also raised concerns about the applicant’s current activity at the site, including on-site signage and alleged boarding or training of dogs at a shed behind the house. Several neighbors said they had observed frequent vehicle activity, multiple dogs being walked and occasional late-night barking. Others urged that limited, low-impact home-based business activity might be accommodated without a zoning change but opposed broader commercial rezoning.

After public comment, a council member moved to amend the ordinance to deny the rezoning request and the body approved the amendment and then adopted the denial; the motion to deny was passed unanimously on the floor (5–0).

Why it matters: Zoning determines allowable uses in neighborhoods and shapes long-term character and property values; the council’s denial preserves the block’s residential zoning and avoids creating a local precedent for spot zoning, according to opponents.