Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning Housing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council approves rezoning at Oak Street after heated neighborhood pushback
Summary
Council unanimously approved rezoning of 1678 Oak Street to allow new low‑income residential units with a stated preference toward veterans; neighbors raised concerns about past experiences with veteran housing and asked for mixed‑use or alternatives.
The Montgomery City Council voted to approve an ordinance rezoning a lot at 1678 Oak Street from B‑2 commercial to a residential category to allow redevelopment as extremely low‑income housing with a stated preference toward veterans. The planning commission had recommended the rezoning by a narrow majority following a public hearing.
Nut graf: Neighbors and community representatives urged the council to consider alternatives—mixed use, fewer units, or broader tenant eligibility—citing concerns about past experiences in the neighborhood. Council members and the applicant agreed the developer must modify the design to meet lot‑coverage and other technical requirements, and that the project may require a board‑of‑adjustments exception due to lot‑size conformance issues.
Barbara Clark, representing the applicant, said the plan would demolish the existing structure and replace it with housing targeted to extremely low‑income residents. "We do want to knock the building down and put up some units for extremely low income housing, with the preference towards veterans," she said. Lonnie Smith, speaking for neighbors, said past veterans placements had been associated in his experience with substance‑use and disorder and argued the project risked reversing neighborhood gains.
Planning staff noted the lot does not meet the R‑60 minimum lot size and explained the project would need design adjustments and likely an exception from the board of adjustments. Council members pressed the applicant about reducing unit count and incorporating mixed‑use options; the applicant indicated willingness to adjust designs to meet lot‑coverage limits.
Ending: After discussion and community comment, the council recorded its recommendation for approval and adopted the ordinance unanimously; staff and the developer will work on required design adjustments and any board‑of‑adjustments processes that arise.
