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Hoover board recommends pre-zoning 17 acres off Patton Chapel Road

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Map provided by city of Hoover

The Hoover Planning and Zoning Commission on Monday night voted to recommend the Hoover City Council pre-zone about 17 acres off Patton Chapel Road for residential and commercial development. 

In April, the city council annexation committee voted to recommend the city council annex the property, which currently is zoned in Jefferson County. Monday's affirmative vote by the zoning board means that the property will be sent to the city council for simultaneous annexation and zoning approval at a later date. 

Twelve of the 17 acres are under contract by the D.R. Horton building company, which plans to construct a 42-home neighborhood on the land. All 17 acres are owned currently by four sisters from the Douglas family. The plot contains a house, an apartment, a lake and a landscape supply business that faces Old Columbiana Road.

One of the sisters, Alma Gaudette, told the Hoover Sun in April that the family is searching for a potential buyer to purchase the five acres that aren't under contract by D.R. Horton. The commission voted to recommend that the five-acre portion of the property be pre-zoned as Community Business District and the 12-acre portion as Planned Residential Development District. Both parcels already are zoned for similar purposes in Jefferson County. 

Rhett Loveman represented D.R. Horton at Monday's meeting. He explained that the 42-home neighborhood would be designed for older home buyers. By mandate, 80 percent of the constructed homes would have to purchased and occupied by adults ages 55 and over. The other 20 percent of homes could be purchased by buyers ages 19-54, but no one under 18 would be permitted to live in the community permanently. This is intended to eliminate the possibility of placing further strain on enrollment in Hoover City Schools. 

"It'll work to ensure that there is minimal impact on the school system," Loveman said. 

The homes in the proposed neighborhood would be constructed to appeal specifically to the senior population. Loveman said that they would consist of two bedrooms and two bathrooms on the first floor, with a bonus room located on the second floor so that older citizens wouldn't have to rely on using stairs. The additional room, he said, would be intended to host visiting relatives. 

A 20-foot buffer would separate the boundary of the new development from its preexisting residential neighbors. To comply with regulations governing senior-geared communities, the proposed development would include sidewalks that trace both sides of the street.  

Loveman said the neighborhood, as a whole, would be designed for active adults who desire convenient access to shopping and entertainment. 

In other business tonight, the planning and zoning commission voted to recommend the city council grant conditional use approval for Covenant Classical School to build its third Hoover-area location in Tattersall Park on Greystone Way. The school owns the property, which is zoned as Community Business District. 

Prior to making that recommendation, the commission granted preliminary approval to Brooks Knapp of EBSCO Industries to develop a seven-lot subdivision located at Tattersall Park off Highway 119 and Greystone Way. The approval was contingent upon EBSCO providing a comprehensive traffic study and gaining access permits along Highway 119 from the Alabama Department of Transportation. Last July, the commission voted to recommend the city council zone the 18-acre chunk of land as community business district, which it now is. 

The commission tonight also:

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