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Commission rejects rezoning request for 103 South Magnolia, citing consistency with historic residential district
Summary
After sustained public comment emphasizing the block—s residential future-land-use designation and prior council denials, the commission voted to deny a request to rezone 103 South Magnolia from GR-2 to NMX.
The Planning Commission unanimously voted on April 20 to deny a request to rezone 103 South Magnolia (roughly 0.34 acres) from GR-2 (two units per acre) to neighborhood mixed use (NMX). The applicant—s representative, Roman Hammes, said the restored former hotel would be used as a law office; neighbors argued the change would introduce commercial creep into a historic residential block.
Residents including Matt Johnson, Peter Gorman and Birdie and Laura Crosby presented the town—s future land-use map and said the block is designated single-family detached in the comprehensive plan. Speakers said prior, similar requests on South Magnolia had been denied by council and cautioned that granting NMX would set a precedent permitting restaurants, group homes or day-care centers that they consider incompatible with the residential scale.
Commissioners discussed the history of previous denials and the purpose of the historic-district zoning, and then called the question. The motion to deny carried unanimously. The denial preserves GR-2 status for the parcel; the property owners or their agent may pursue other options but the commission and public emphasized adherence to the comprehensive plan for this residential block.
What happens next: The applicant may revise plans or seek a different zoning approach, but the commission—s recommendation supports Town Council deference to the comprehensive-plan mapping for the neighborhood.
