City commission remands 600 Whitehead appeal to planning board for focused review

The City Commission on Aug. 6 remanded the appeal of a planning‑board denial concerning 600 Whitehead (the Courthouse Deli) back to the planning board for a narrower factual determination. The applicant sought to convert an existing retail/ takeout space to a seated restaurant with 18 indoor seats. Planning staff and the planning board had concluded the proposal increased parking demand and operational intensity, and denied the change as an expansion of a nonconforming use.

Commissioners focused their questions on whether the planning board record established that the retail use had been abandoned and therefore whether the application should be analyzed under the code’s subsection (e) (change of nonconforming use) rather than subsection (d) (prohibition on increasing a nonconformity). The commission voted to remand the matter to the planning board for a determination limited to whether retail use was abandoned and, if not, for a full evaluation under subsection (e) including parking impacts and intensity measures. The vote leaves open later appellate remedies depending on the planning board’s findings.

Planning staff had presented parking calculations and said the proposed dining area would require roughly 11 off‑street parking spaces under city code; the applicant argued existing benches and historic seating should be credited toward that demand and asked the commission to overturn the planning board. The remand requires the planning board to return with a clarified record on abandonment and intensity.