Planning commission backs rezoning recommendation for 17400 West Olive Drive apartments, tables site plan

The Duval Heights Planning Commission on Oct. 9 recommended that City Council rezone a 6.66‑acre parcel at 17400 West Olive Drive from R‑1 (single‑family) to RM (multi‑family) to allow construction of a proposed 22‑unit apartment building. Commissioners voted to postpone the related site plan review until council acts on the rezoning and the applicant obtains any required variances.

Planning staff told the commission the project, submitted by Riverside Properties, proposes a 22‑unit, two‑story building on a 1.18‑acre lot after a proposed lot split. The staff review identified multiple ordinance variances the plan would require if the site were split as proposed, including reduced side and building‑length setbacks and a shortfall of minimum lot area to meet RM density standards. Engineering also flagged the site’s proximity to critical underground utilities and a city‑owned parcel the applicant intends to use for the driveway approach.

The city planner said the main driveway approach shown on the conceptual plan crosses a city‑owned parcel that contains a 30‑inch sanitary interceptor, water mains and other infrastructure. The planner and the city attorney told the commission the applicant currently has no legal interest in city property for access; council would need to authorize sale or an easement for the development to use that parcel for vehicle access. Staff also said the property lies near a federally designated special flood hazard area and that final elevations are within a few tenths of the FEMA base flood elevation, requiring detailed floodproofing and a full grading and stormwater submission.

Developer Zach Baydoun, who owns the adjacent Riverside Properties mobile home park, told commissioners the concept is intended to provide professionally managed rental housing for local residents and to add tax revenue to the city. The project team said they had prepared a conceptual site plan and will submit detailed construction documents, stormwater calculations and a formal sanitary connection plan if the rezoning proceeds.

Multiple members of the public raised concerns about traffic near nearby schools, pedestrian safety for children who walk to Riverside Middle School, parking and possible displacement of mobile home residents. Representatives of the school district asked commissioners to consider impacts on children and drop‑off/pick‑up traffic patterns.

Commissioners debated whether to consider the lot split first or rezone the entire parcel. Planning staff advised that the applicant’s request, as submitted, seeks rezoning of the entire parcel (without an approved lot split) and that site plan review should wait until the legal and engineering access questions and any variances are resolved. Following discussion, the commission voted to recommend approval of the rezoning of the entire parcel to City Council and to postpone the site plan review until after council action and any required variances are obtained.

Next steps: the rezoning recommendation will go to Duval Heights City Council for a final decision. If council approves the rezoning, the applicant must secure legal access (sale or easement from the city parcel or an alternative access), complete engineering and stormwater reviews, obtain required variances, and return to the planning commission for final site plan review.