Commission approves Daxton Hotel amendment to reduce deliveries but keeps restrictions on truck size

The Birmingham City Commission on April 13 approved a special land‑use permit amendment for the Daxton Hotel at 298 South Old Woodward that allows the developer to add an in‑house laundry and install a trash compactor in place of roll‑off containers, subject to conditions designed to limit curb impacts.

Planning staff described the proposal as a way to reduce delivery volume — the hotel estimated roughly seven to eight deliveries per day, about three of those linen deliveries — by bringing laundry operations inside the building. The planning board recommended approval after the Board of Zoning Appeals granted a variance for one off‑street loading space.

Conditions approved by the commission require the hotel to accept deliveries only by vans or similarly sized vehicles that can be accommodated within the lower‑level parking facility; to submit revised site plans showing an off‑street loading facility that meets zoning requirements; and to comply with all city department requests. Commissioners emphasized enforcement and asked the Daxton to self‑police vendor behavior, including directing bell staff to direct truck drivers to load/unload in the basement bay where feasible.

The motion passed on roll call after commissioners debated enforcement language and sought a graduated response before revoking the SLUP for any deviation. Commissioner comments noted the practical difficulty trucks face entering the basement truck well while nearby construction limited access, and the applicant said it will deploy staff to manage deliveries and encourage vendors to use smaller vehicles.

Provenance: Topic introduced SEG 3096, topic finish SEG 3633.