Homewood trustees will have an opportunity Tuesday, March 10, to approve the sale of two village-owned properties to a developer, but some residents continue to question the preferred developer chosen by the board in February.
The two properties, the village hall parking lot at 2024 Chestnut Road and the Matrix Building at 2066 Ridge Road, attracted six proposals. Three were withdrawn or disqualified. At the Feb. 13 board meeting, trustees voted 5 to 1 to designate the proposal from Holladay Properties as its preferred developer.
Read more: Homewood TOD Redevelopment Page
The properties are within a TIF district, so the law required the village to seek alternative bids. Two of the original developers, the Southland Development Authority and the Far South Community Development Corporation, revised and resubmitted their proposals.
At the Feb. 27 meeting, several residents and one trustee, Lauren Roman, voiced opposition to the Holladay proposal. Roman voted against selecting Holladay as the preferred developer.
The main focus of opponents is on the parking, greenspace and rental rate issues. All the proposals for 2024 Chestnut Road will replace existing public parking with a new residential and commercial structure.
One proposal, SDA’s, included a 41-space parking structure in its plan. FSCDC’s plan includes some affordable housing units.
The village has other plans to compensate for loss of parking, including adding spaces along Harwood Avenue and gaining access to St. John Neumann Catholic School parking lot on the east side of Dixie Highway.
SDA also included more greenspace in its plan than the others.
The rental rate issue centers on a unit in the original Holladay plan that could cost more than $4,000 per month.
Public correspondence included in the board packet for the March 10 meeting includes 14 comments opposing the Holladay plan.
A memo in the board packet from staff notes that Holladay has revised its plan in response to residents’ comments.
According to the memo, “They have significantly expanded the public plaza on the south portion of the site, increasing overall public gathering space. The north portion of the property now features enhanced green open space. They have incorporated 10 public parking spaces along Chestnut Road and can commit to installing a couple of EV charging stations in this area. They eliminated the single and costly ($4,400 rent) 1,600-plus (square foot) unit.”
The board packet also includes a side-by-side comparison of each proposal.
This project will be the first major development since the village completely revamped its zoning code in 2023. Staff notes the process has changed and includes a number of opportunities for public input before construction begins.
