Lebanon panel recommends council approve parking plan and forward variance request for 108 East St. Louis

Lebanon City planning members voted to recommend that the city council approve a site plan for 108 East St. Louis and forward the applicant’s request for a parking variance.

The applicant, Justin, told commissioners he intends to install a storefront at ground level with residential units above and asked the body to recommend a variance rather than a special use because the ordinance’s square‑footage parking standard would otherwise prohibit reasonable reuse of the 4,000‑square‑foot building. Commissioners and neighbors emphasized that under the city's parking formula (spaces per bedroom plus visitor spaces) the development could require roughly 12–16 spaces, a total the applicant said cannot be accommodated without the easement the city previously granted.

Commission discussion focused on two practical constraints: the parking math set by the adopted building/parking standard and safety concerns where the site meets a state highway. Members and residents noted existing no‑left‑turn signage and the state’s potential to require traffic changes if incidents increase. Neighbors also raised historic‑district concerns: the mermaid house behind the parcel could be affected by rear windows or egress changes, and commenters asked that any visible parking area be screened by landscaping or a wooden privacy fence, an idea urged in an email read into the record from Liz Hung of the historic society.

Resident Mike Abeck asked whether the vacant former bank lot across the street could be converted to public parking to ease constraints for retail uses; members said ownership and responsiveness from an out‑of‑state owner make that solution uncertain. Commissioners repeatedly stressed that the easement already granted by council (five city spaces) should be reflected in the recommend‑to‑council site plan so the applicant’s proposal is evaluated with the combined parking count.

Lind moved that the commission recommend council approval of the site plan incorporating the five city spaces already granted by easement together with the on‑site parking layout; the motion was seconded and carried by roll call. The recommendation will be considered at the council meeting scheduled for the second Monday following the committee meeting.

The commission did not adopt final ordinance text or a permanent variance; it forwarded its recommendation and the applicant’s request to the council for formal action and any required legal determinations about variance transferability, historic‑district conditions, and state‑highway access review.