Residents Question Businesses Bordering Neighborhoods During Rezoning Process

The Birmingham planning board delayed making any decisions on proposed amendments to the city’s zoning code after a public hearing Wednesday night brought up more questions than board members could answer.

Specifically, the planning board is considering designating certain swaths of the city as “neighborhood commercial” zones. With new zoning designations, however, comes a new list of permitted uses for businesses there, many of which were called into question during a public hearing Wednesday night that attracted around a dozen residents.

The properties and areas in question — 16 in total scattered throughout the city — are currently designated as O1 and O2, or "office commercial," zones.

As part of the proposal, the property at 2100 E. Maple Rd. is also being considered for the MX, or rail, district while the building at 400 W. Maple is being considered for the B4, or downtown business, zone.

The new “neighborhood commercial” designation is made up of three sub-categories:

• N1 includes properties that directly abut residential areas
• N2 properties are separated from single-family homes by some kind of natural barrier, like a street or waterway
• N3 was created specifically for the western corner of Quarton Road and Woodward Avenue.

While most of the permitted uses from O1 and O2 carry over to the neighborhood commercial zones, several residents raised issues with the kinds of businesses that would be permitted to operate only feet away from single-family homes. Board member Carroll DeWeese had problems with convenience and specialty food stores permitted in the N1 zone (citing food and garbage smell), while several residents pointed out that “clinics,” also allowed in the N1 zone, is undefined by the city.

When it comes to new businesses opening around the corner, resident Kathy Schwartz said the lack of definitions in the new zoning code is troubling and needs to be fixed going forward. "It's kind of the devil you know or the devil you don't know. We're afraid of the devil we don't know," she said.

In addition, the board found several technical and administrative problems with the plans, expressing a desire to have city attorney Tim Currier review the plans and ensure the changes to permitted uses are legal.

The process to rezone certain sections of the city began in October 2008, when the city commission instructed the planning board to study appropriate uses of commercial property. The planning board held study sessions throughout the latter half of 2009, then appointed a three-person subcommittee to draft changes to the ordinance in May 2010.

According to DeWeese, the problems raised Wednesday needs to be fixed sooner rather than later. "We need to have a clean product going forward to the city commission. We're close but we're not there," he said.

The planning board is proposing to designate the following properties as N1, N2 and N3:

To be designated N1

• 14 Mile Road, between Woodward Avenue and Melton Road
• 1225 Bowers Street
• 1821 W. Maple Road
• 1875 and 1890 Southfield Road
• 295 Elm St. and 837 and 855 Forest Ave.
• 920 Lincoln Ave.
• 550 Merrill St.
• South Adams Street, between Lincoln and Adams Square
• East Maple Road, between Elm Street and Adams Street
• 825 Bowers Street
• West Brown Street between Purdy and Henrietta

To be designated N2

• 101 Southfield Rd.
• all O2 properties in the triangle district, west of Elm Street
• 112 Adams St.
• North Old Woodward Avenue between Ravine Road and Oak Street

To be designated N3

• Woodward Avenue between Quarton Road and Redding Road

To be designated MX

• 2100 E. Maple Road

To be designated B4

• 400 W. Maple Rd.

The plans now go to the subcommittee, returning to the full board May 25. At that point, the planning board is expected to recommend that the city commission amend the ordinance and finalize the new zoning codes.