Council refers rezoning petition for three Ninth Avenue lots back to administration after neighborhood concerns

A majority of Huntington City Council voted Dec. 9 to refer a petition to rezone three lots on the 1500 block of Ninth Avenue back to the city administration for more study and neighborhood outreach.

The second-reading petition would change the properties' zoning from R4 (two-family residential) to C1 (neighborhood commercial). Stephanie Petruzzo, senior planner, told council the petition from Huntington Realty Corporation is a zoning map amendment; the Planning Commission voted 7-0 to recommend approval and staff said the change aligns with the city's comprehensive-plan boundary adjustments. Petruzzo noted that petitioners are not required to disclose specific development plans when seeking a rezoning.

Longtime neighborhood resident Sandra Clements testified against the rezoning, saying the block is a continuous residential stretch where homes have generations of family history and warning that businesses can bring "noise, traffic and trash." David Michael, executive director of Habitat for Humanity Tri-State, urged council to consider the city's housing needs and described Habitat's recent local work and two planned home sites at 1515 Ninth Avenue and 1411 Ninth Avenue; he said Habitat escrows property taxes, insurance and municipal/refuse fees for buyers and has partial funding in place. Sam Saint Clair, president of Huntington Realty Corporation and the petitioner, said the lots have sat vacant for decades, are contiguous to his existing commercial holdings and that he intends to study site constraints, including a three-foot elevation difference, before designing any buildings.

Council members debated the balance between protecting neighborhood livability and encouraging small-scale, walkable commercial uses. Several councilors explained that C1 zoning permits a mix of residential and small businesses and that many potentially incompatible uses would require separate conditional-use approvals. Mayor Williams and others argued the proposal would benefit from more staff-led coordination; Miss Mount moved to send the petition back to the administration so planning staff could work with property owners and neighbors, a motion Councilman Bailey seconded. The motion passed on a voice vote.

Next steps: the petition will be referred to the administration and the planning commission for further outreach and technical review before returning to council for subsequent consideration.