Henderson City Council approves Elmwood redevelopment plan, backs $2.64M regional rail planning grant

Mayor Eddie Ellington called the Henderson City Council to order on March 14, 2022, and welcomed the Leadership Vance Class before the council moved through the evening's agenda.

At a public hearing, the council approved Resolution 22-16 to adopt the Elmwood District Urban Redevelopment Plan, a roughly 200-acre redevelopment area that staff and the Redevelopment Commission say is intended to spur property value increases once built out. Council Member Marion B. Williams said she was concerned the plan's “Elmwood” label could be interpreted as renaming parts of the West End community; City Manager Edward T. Blackmon responded that the title is intended only to identify the geographic project area and “the intent was never to change the neighborhood names,” and City Attorney D. Rix Edwards advised leaving the plan title as presented. No members of the public spoke during the hearing, and the resolution passed 7–0 with Council Member Sara M. Coffey absent.

Council members approved several items under New Business. The council accepted a proposal to retain Insight Planning and Development to administer Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Grant #20-C-3633, with an…