The Homewood Planning Commission voted to forward a recommendation to City Council to remove "minor vehicle repair" as a permitted use in the Green Springs Urban Redevelopment District and asked council to consider adopting a definition for the term similar to the West Homewood District.

Commission chair Mister Roberts introduced case TX260102 and said the text amendment would strike the subsection in Article 4 that describes restrictions on minor vehicle repair and remove the use from the GERD permitted-use chart. Vice Chair Mister Henninger told commissioners the change grew out of City Council concerns after it approved a Valvoline instant oil facility; Henninger said council expressed that "similar facilities were not in keeping with the vision" for Green Springs.

Two residents spoke during public comment. Beverly Labeouf of 617 Edgemore Drive recounted a previous denial of a proposed car wash at the site now occupied by Smoothie King and said the earlier code language that limited vehicle service had been dropped; she said banning minor vehicle repair would "help with that" and support upgrading the corridor. Robbie Patel of 606 Bristol Lane urged a deliberate, holistic approach, noting the city has already made substantial investments — "Green Springs has continuous sidewalks on both the east and west side of the corridor ... they extend roughly 4 miles in total" — and warning that piecemeal code deletions could undermine the boulevard vision.

A commissioner asked for clarity about ordinance language on nonconforming uses, specifically what it means to "extend" a use; staff and colleagues explained that "extend" commonly refers to broadening the allowed use (for example adding tire sales to an oil change business) even when the building footprint does not change. Several commissioners and staff also pointed to the citywide comprehensive plan process now underway as the forum for broader corridor design discussions; staff said ward-based workshops and a January 28 kickoff are scheduled.

After clarifying language, the commission voted on the motion — made by Mister Henninger and seconded (not identified in the record) — to recommend deletion of minor vehicle repair in the GERD and to ask City Council to consider adding a definition similar to the West Homewood District's. The recorded vote was six yes, zero no, one abstention (Mister Stamps). The commission's recommendation will be forwarded to City Council.

Staff closed with reminders about the upcoming comprehensive-plan meetings. The chair adjourned the meeting.