Neal Embry Starnes Media
Rockwell Homes wants to put 11 houses on this 2.37-acre parcel at 3276 Greendale Road in Vestavia Hills, Alabama, and is asking the city to rezone the property to accommodate that.
The Vestavia Hills Planning and Zoning Commission on Thursday recommended the City Council rezone 2.37 acres on Greendale Road to accommodate an 11-home subdivision called Braxton.
The property at 3276 Greendale Road currently is zoned as an R-2 medium-density residential district, which requires lots of at least 15,000 square feet and homes of at least 1,600 square feet. Rockwell Homes is asking for the zoning to be changed to an R-9 residential district, which does not have minimum size restrictions.
Sam Dariani, the applicant and president of Rockwell Homes, said the plan is to put 11 houses on the site.
Several residents near the property voiced concerns about storm drainage, the property’s impact on traffic, the number of houses being built on the property and it not being a good fit for the neighborhood.
“I don’t think it’s right for the neighborhood,” Suzanne Howell told the zoning board. “I understand profits. Everybody wants to make money, but I don’t think it’s the right feel for this neighborhood.”
Another resident, Aaron Vines expressed concern about traffic. “The best I can tell from the plans, the entrance to the new neighborhood is right at the crest of the hill and also in a very bad turn. I think everyone from our neighborhood would agree that we’re a walking neighborhood, we’re a bicycle neighborhood," Vines said. "We have a lot of children that play in that neighborhood. They all congregate and play … I don’t know if there are any plans to do anything about sidewalks.”
Representatives of Dariani said sidewalks would be installed on the property eventually.
Rusty Weaver, a member of the zoning board, said he understands residents’ concerns about the property being a right fit for the neighborhood but said it’s not the responsibility of the zoning board to tell an applicant what they should do with a property but what they can do.
