Developer’s restaurant-and-park plan for former Homewood Police Department receives 6-0 recommendation to city council

The Homewood Planning Commission approved a resurvey of the former Homewood Police Department parcel and unanimously voted to forward a positive recommendation on rezoning case RZ250705 to City Council.

Michael Moran, the applicant, said he intends to redevelop the former police site into a one-story, high-end restaurant with about two-thirds of the site converted into a passive public park. "This was my attempt to try to customize a development to fit what I understood to be, the majority of the city's wishes," Moran said, describing outreach and a prior City Council approval of the concept.

Moran and Michael Schalles of Chambliss King Architects described site plans and said the city requested a one-story building and an income-producing asset. Commissioners asked about valet and parking arrangements; Moran said he has a verbal agreement with the Aloft hotel owners to use an upper-deck parking area and that he intends to formalize arrangements if the project proceeds.

Staff explained that the requested C4 zoning classification permits food and beverage uses (no drive-through), general retail, health and fitness studios, certain medical and professional offices, personal services and indoor sport facilities, and that the requested zoning would be consistent with the city’s adopted mixed-use land-use plan. Staff also reported that notices were mailed to owners within 500 feet; planning staff received one supportive email from a condominium resident and no expressions of opposition.

In separate votes, the commission approved the resurvey (recorded as 20250704) by a 6-0 vote and then voted 6-0 to recommend RZ250705 to City Council. The rezoning recommendation and the resurvey now proceed to the next steps in the city’s review and approval process.