Board of Zoning Adjustment - Regular Meeting

Thank you. Hello, everyone. This being the time and place of our regular schedule, May 26, 2026, Board of Zoning Adjustment meeting, I would like to call us to order. Please call the roll.

Here. Here. Here. Here. Here.

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Here. All right. I'd like to take a moment to introduce the board of zoning adjustment members and give a brief description of what we do and how this meeting will be conducted. The board consists of five regular members and two super enumerator members who are appointed by city council and represent as clearly as possible each council district or other areas as determined by city council. My name is Tom Polk. Our other members are Chester Ayers, Mark McCurry, Mark Moody, and John Baggetts, our numerary, a regular member of Flora Gonzales, and we have another supernumerary issue yet to be determined. Members of the public seeking to get an item considered by the Board of Zoning Adjustments must send an application to the Planning Department not less than 21 days prior to the meeting. Unless otherwise specified, all applications submitted for the Board of Zoning Adjustments are the result of submittals submitted by private citizens seeking some change in their own property. In making its decisions, the Board of Zoning Adjustments relies on a structured review process to ensure that requests for variances, special exceptions, and zoning interpretations are evaluated fairly and consistently. The first part of today's meeting is new business. Each item will be read separately and voted on after comments and discussion. If you wish to comment on an item, We ask that you come forward to the microphone, state your name, and whether you're a citizen of Decatur, then make your comments. We ask that you keep your comments to three minutes or less and sign the sign-in sheet afterwards. Today's new business hearing will have these types of requests. Variants. I think that's the only type we have here, Chad. It is. All right. Please call the first case.

Okay. The first case that we have today is 260-526-01, and this is a variance request from the Community Commercial District requirements. There's three specific requests for a variance listed. However, we're only going to hear number one, which is the front and rear setback of zero feet. petitioner is pew right mcconnelly on behalf of the property owner of the city of decatur the subject address is located west of 431 holly street northeast the request a front and rear setback of zero feet the surrounding zoning on the north community commercial on the south and east also community commercial and then on the west central business district The applicant is requesting a variance, specifically relief from the required front setback of 25 feet and rear setback of 20 feet to allow setbacks of zero feet. The information necessary for staff and BZA adequately to assess the compatibility around the surrounding area, it actually fits being that to the west it is CB zoning, which also doesn't have a setback for rear or front. However, the other matters that we were going to do a variance for were not properly advertised, so we're going to come back and address the maximum buildable area as well as the building height. Any questions related to that case? And a variance for the setbacks. Okay. Moving on to the basically similar case for the same property for the... We're just going to take it one at a time. Okay.

Yes. No, we need to hear from the applicant. Is anyone here representing that case?

Hey, good evening. Jackson McAnally with P Wright McAnally. On behalf of the engineering working for the city of Decatur, we're asking for this variance for the parking garage to serve the area and surrounding areas for future improvement. The zero setback is what we need to accomplish the site constraints that we have and meet those in accordance to what we are planning.

Understand there is also a request for a vacation to Holly Street?

That is correct.

Describe how this vacation would impact this property.

Of course. The vacation to Holly Street will be on the northeast side. of the parking deck all the way to 4th Avenue. So if you're looking at the east corner of the parking deck, that is kind of the demarcation line of where the vacation of Holly Street will be stopped. essentially the phase one of the vacation of Holly Street it will be from 4th Avenue just east the proposed parking deck and then for the future development of say the hotel to the east we'll do another vacation of Holly Street from hop from the eastern portion of the parking deck all the way to 6th Avenue we left it there to serve renault bank and we also have a connecting drive from holly street to the alley to allow a fire lane from 6th avenue to the new parking deck all right thank you for that no problem any questions from the board

How does that affect the bank that's there?

The Regions Bank or Renasant Bank?

The Regions.

Regions Bank, it's owned by the same property owner, but Regions Bank still has two connecting drives, or two drives, one along 4th Avenue and one along Lee Street. So it does not impact their traffic flow and the vacation of Holly Street in that area.

So they don't have an access from that side, street side? No, sir. Okay, great. Thank you.

Well, they may have it for the existing Teller Drive, I believe, that is east of their building. However, they're relocating that Teller Drive to the south of their building, and where that existing Teller Drive is is going to be our new connection to the parking deck.

All right, great. Thank you. Mm-hmm.

Any further questions or comments from the board? Any comments from the planning department? Any questions or comments from the public? All right, this case being presented to the board, do we have a motion and a second?

Motion to approve the front and rear setback from zero feet.

Chester made an error. Chester Ayers made a first and Mark seconded it. All right. This case being presented before the board for its vote. All in favor, state aye. Or please, you call the roll. Aye.

Ayers?

Yes.

Yes. Yes. Yes.

Yes. All right. You have unanimous decision. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Do you sign the sign-in sheet, sir?

I did not. That was hot in front of me.

Thank you, sir. Please call the second case.

Okay. Our next case is also related to the subject property. It's variance 260526-02. The petitioner is Pew Wright McAnally, property owner, city of Decatur. Subject address, west of 431 Holly Street, northeast. And this is a request for a variance for landscaping. Let me get to my proper section. The ordinance in order to omit all required landscaping associated with the construction of a new parking deck is the request. As part of overall development plan, Holly Street alone with the parking deck will have frontage and is proposed to be vacated and converted into a private street. Because the street will no longer function as a traditional public right-of-way, the applicant contends that landscape and standards typically applied to public street frontages may not be practical or necessary in this instance. Applicant is therefore seeking relief for all required landscaping associated with the parking deck frontage and perimeter areas. staff review the purpose and intent of the city's landscaping regulations which are intended to soften the visual impact of large structures and paved surfaces enhance pedestrian character improve streetscape aesthetics reduce urban heat island effects and provide buffering between different land uses staff recommends approval of the variance request subject to the board of zoning adjustments consideration of appropriate design conditions alternative streetscape enhancements previous request that i've read to you all prior to this meeting has been changed in fact more landscape has been added to the project so some of those things that i initially read to you have been omitted so for example the first request we request that the site be exempt from the requirements for foundation landscaping that only applies to the southern side of the site adjacent to the unnamed alley previously it was on the western side of the site that is adjacent to fourth avenue northeast but after seeing the new updated plans and made adjustments there will be a series of trees and landscaping foundational landscaping on their left side with the exception of the entrances into the parking garage so they've improved that the second request per the letter from mr. excuse me I'm sorry but where did you say landscape would be provided in this landscaping will be provided on the western side of the site that is adjacent to fourth avenue however it will not be located along the southern side of the site adjacent to the unnamed valley thank you for that um the second request has been omitted so has the third request because they've added additional trees meeting our requirements for landscaping on the northern side as well as the eastern side but the southern side again will be omitted because it opens up to the unnamed alley um The next request is the request that the site be completely exempt from the requirements for the off street parking perimeter landscaping, which would be the outer landscaping all the way around the structure. And lastly, the request for the site be completely exempt from the requirements for off-street interior landscaping, which would be grassed or mulched islands on the interior of the parking lot. And there's only really one place they would be able to do that, which would be the top level. And so that's the variance to be exempt from the requirement.

Quickly. Okay. Where will they provide ordinance-required landscaping?

Okay.

Will it be on the west side?

They will have foundation landscaping on the west side adjacent to 4th Avenue, but not on the south side, which is adjacent to the unnamed alley.

Now, that's only for foundation on the west side. What about street on the west side?

Well, off-street parking shall be exempt. Off-street perimeter landscaping shall be exempt from the entire project.

Okay, thank you.

As well as interior landscaping, off-street interior landscaping. Typically, off-street interior landscaping is the landscaping inside of the parking lot, where if you have so many parking spaces, you're required to have 6%. Like mulch, islands, or trees in the parking lot, in the interior of the parking lot. And the only place that they would actually be able to do that would be the top deck. So they're asking for an exemption there.

Okay.

But the west side will be compliant for the foundation?

Yes.

Thank you.

The other areas for foundation landscaping in the second part and the third part, they've added more trees. Initially, they were asking for zero trees and one shrub per 15 linear feet, but they were able to meet the requirements for one tree per 30 linear feet and one shrub per three linear feet by adding smaller trees and more shrubs to the northern side as well as the eastern side.

But those won't be compliant, will they?

Excuse me? Will those be compliant? Yes, they will be.

Okay, so Westside Foundation, and you just described north side.

And the east side.

And the east. For all street or perimeter?

For foundation.

For foundation. All right, thank you for the clarification.

Okay.

Any more questions?

Initially, they were not.

Correct. Correct.

That's okay. We can't go the other way. Right, right. It's an improvement.

It's an improvement for what was initially requested.

But the sum they can will be compliant with the zoning? Yes. Okay, thank you.

We can always do more. If it was noticed that they were going to want a bigger variance, we can do less of a variance, but we can never go the opposite way without notice. So that's why I wanted to make sure that everything they were originally requested was noticed.

Yeah, so we can make that a condition that on the west side, north side, and east side foundation are in compliance.

Correct.

That's good.

And that's why I was wanting that clarification.

Yeah, that's why I just wanted to make sure that's what was noticed so that we know we're going to work right.

Yeah, yes, sir. Yes, ma'am.

Any more questions from the board?

Who's here representing that case? Ah, a familiar face.

Hey, Jackson McAnally, PR McAnally on behalf of City of Decatur again. We are requesting this landscape variance. As Chad mentioned, the request is that the site be exempt from the requirements of foundation landscaping on the southern side of the alley, excuse me, of the parking garage along the alley. We request that the site be completely exempt from the requirements of the off-street parking perimeter landscaping. and we finally request that the site be completely exempt from the requirements of the off-street interior landscaping i believe i said i did say perimeter landscaping on that last one just want to make that clear so perimeter landscaping and interior landscaping we believe that this request constitutes a valid hardship due to the constraints of the site and we asked the board to approve our variance

But you're willing to provide foundation landscaping for north side and the east and west side?

That is correct.

Okay. Alright, any more questions for the applicant from the board? Any questions or comments from the planning department? No comment. Any questions or comments from the public? All right, this case being presented for the board for its vote, do I have a motion and a second? I make a motion we accept as submitted with one condition, that foundation landscaping is provided on the north side and east and west sides.

I say. Second.

All right. We've got a motion and a second before the board for a vote. Please call the roll.

Ayers.

Yes.

Bolt.

Yes.

Gurney. Yes. Booty. Yes.

Hayden. Yes. All right. Congratulations. It's been approved, sir. Thank you. And what we need is autographed again. I'm going to sign in. Oh, you signed it once. No.

Okay, our next case is a variance 260526-04. The petitioner is Nicholas Ostry. Property owner, Indian Hills Partners Incorporated. Subject address, 3430 Indian Hills Road, Southeast. The request is a variance to deviate from the district requirements in the community commercial district with a maximum buildable area exceeding 40%. The requirement limits to the development with CC to only 40% total impervious coverage. Our current proposed built area is over 60%. The required built area max limit of 40% creates a near unachievable goal for us to meet while maintaining adequate circulation through the development and providing the minimum required amount of off street parking. The developer is aware that the rezoned base of the zoning ordinance rewrite and held to the standards of CC zoning. They ask that the Board of Zoning Adjustments will consider the request for granting the 20% variance exceeding the 40% for the built area max for CC zone. Based on analysis, staff recommends approval of the variance request to allow the maximum buildable area within the community commercial district to exceed the permitted 40%.

Any questions from the board of planning department on this case? okay so they'd still have to meet all their other other requirements such as storm water management which this increase in building area would impose perfect thank you Is there anyone here representing this case? Yes, sir. Please come to the microphone.

Hey, board. Good evening. My name's Nicholas Oshry. I'm with Civil Consultants. I am not a citizen of Decatur. I'm happy to answer any questions you have.

Can you kind of briefly overview the project for us from your perspective?

Yes, it's an express oil change. It's going in right across from that Publix out there in the Priceville area, still in Decatur, but the lot has already been subdivided. We kind of made that subdivision based on the old zoning ordinance. I know a new one has been adopted. So that's kind of why we carved out as much as we did, not realizing we needed to have over twice as much land, which was kind of a surprise for us that the requirement for built area is only 40% because so many commercial lots are 85% to 90%. Just think of a Chick-fil-A or a Taco Bell or something as almost entirely impervious. So that caught us off guard a little bit, and so we've come here to ask for a variance from that requirement.

So this project has been in planning that began with our previous zoning ordinance, is that right?

That's correct. We haven't submitted anything that tied us to that zoning ordinance. But, yeah, we've done a subdivision, and we've done the landscape variance.

Is that right? We did a rezone. Okay. Everything was done anew. Okay. All right. Thank you. I'm sorry.

Thank you for the clarification. In your... I guess this is part of your submittal package. You went into some of the... analysis of the business use as far as, I mean, cars would be serviced and everything. That's correct. Could you kind of recap those for us?

Yeah, of course. So, uh, with express oil change, they have three oil change bays. And then I believe this building has six service bays. About 75% of their business goes to those oil bays and it's a 10 to 15 minute oil change. Um, so we, we've got our stacking spaces in there to, to account for that. Um, I'm not exactly sure which site plan was submitted with you guys but I believe there's 27 parking spots here which meets the requirement I might be off on that number by a little bit but a majority of the business comes in around lunchtime and the busiest day is Saturday we will probably have some underground attention here just based on the size of the site and it's how close it is to that large storm pipe that goes under that road right there. So we've already done some analysis. We haven't gotten into full design, but we kind of have an idea of what we're going to do with stormwater.

It'll be under the parking deck. Excuse me, under the parking lot?

Yeah, it'll go under the parking lot. We'll probably try and utilize pervious pavement where we can and parking stalls probably in the rear. okay so pervious pavement would be part of the design it's not locked in but if we so we're asking for a kind of a specific amount of impervious the 60% rather than the 40% and to be able to hit that maybe if we go over a little bit as we're doing our design we'll probably include some pervious to stay under what we've requested so I wouldn't be surprised if there was some pervious pavement in the parking thank you for the information any questions or comments from the board

Any questions or comments from the planning department?

No comment.

Public? No? Okay, no comment.

I have a question. On this one, the notice, was the notice given for the 20% difference? It wasn't open-ended. yeah variances specifically they've seen the 40 bill to 20 because he hasn't exceeded 60 plus but then you just said that you were going to make it with perfect one was impervious i just want to make sure the notice was done correctly the wording i used on there was a little open-ended

i think i need it if you put it on the number then we'll meet the number if it's close to what we put on there i put that we were going to go over 60 or something like that to not box it in because we haven't gone through design yet

Did you put 65 on yours?

I'm not sure if we put 65 exactly. Whatever we put on there, then we'll stick with it.

Yeah, in the application in our booklet, it says our current proposed build area is over 60%.

I mean that's what we can meet the 60 that's that's what we're at right now okay so we didn't If the notice doesn't say it, then you'll have to come back next month. If it says 20% variance, then they can vote on it today. It just can't be voted on without the public knowing the notice.

So it's easy, isn't it? No, I forget what they have. Whatever was in the newspaper.

I don't know what's on that. 60% or maybe 60% was there. Unless the word over was used.

Can we make that a condition or no vote cannot vote on the exact amount of variance unless it's bigger variance than what they're requesting in here. It's okay. Whenever it's been just a general we can't have a general variance. That's different than what we just got done. Unfortunately, it has to be specific so that if it's like 20% variance and you don't know what you're voting on, the public knows that it's 20% variance. Because right now, if it's not said, then it can be anything.

Yeah, as long as it's over 60%.

Right, and the public has to know what is going to be brought before you all. You can't have open-ended variances.

Are y'all looking into that, Tommy?

We won't be the last one on this one. The commercial is usually 80-85% in Berbius. I've seen 40% for the building area, but I've never seen 40% for the entire site for Berbius. Because that would be over half of the green space for every commercial site.

What's the verdict? So the notice does say it will exceed the 40%. It didn't say specifically how much. It didn't say specifically how much, but.

You say over 40%, I say 60%. You say over 60%. That's right. So then it doesn't apply to the city. So we need to come back next month.

You have to reapply, or if we don't vote, he can withdraw the case for next month. So you have to withdraw. If we vote on it, we're looking to vote on it. So it'll be automatically.

It's not a proper variance request because it's not specific in nature. And so you'll have to give him an exact amount of what the variance you're requesting will be so that they can actually notice the correct amount. so the city is withdrawing this case the planning department is sure and that's when that's not provided it has to be specific so you will have to know the exact amount of the various requests

well I apologize for taking up every time we will withdraw our application and see y'all next month I just had a memory recall if we voted on our minutes last night There's no other cases before the board. Are there any more cases? The public. We've got to hear from the public.

Okay. We'll get to it.

Okay, this is a variance 260526-05. The petitioner is Kelly Thomas from Downtown Decatur Redevelopment Authority. Property owner, Brandon Price in Yogi Dore. Subject address 208-B, 2nd Avenue. The variance is to permit a storage container retrofitted as a small business shop awarded to the city of Decatur through a grant from Main Street, Alabama and the USDA Rural Program to the Decatur Downtown Redevelopment Authority as a mobile vendor incubator. The incubator will be with DDRA for three years, but will be at this specific location for one year without the ability to move daily. The applicant is requesting a variance to permit a modified storage unit retrofitted into a small business shop to remain in a parking lot adjacent to 206 2nd Avenue temporarily for one year and be classified as a mobile vendor so that it is relieved from the daily requirement to move from the site. The tenants utilizing the incubator space will not be serving or selling food and it will be only for retailers on a short-term basis. The applicant's hardship is that it is a structure that is difficult to classify in a new zoning rewrite. The small shop box is treated as a mobile vendor that doesn't sell food. Commercial storage containers are permitted in non-residential zoning districts for a minimum period of six months as a permanent accessory structure or as a building material for a primary structure. However, the language does not have an interpretation for a mobile vendor or a retrofitted condition container. So as mentioned, this structure is basically a small box retail shop. It moves from city to city around the state and is part of a main street program to help small businesses develop. And we happen to be fortunate enough to be awarded with it. And where it currently sits, it would only remain for a year because the owners of the property are intending to develop their site within the next year.

All right.

Good afternoon, gentlemen. I'm Kelly Thomas, Decatur Downtown Redevelopment Authority. And as Chad said, we did get this through Main Street, Alabama and USDA grant. There are currently eight active small box shops in the state of Alabama. So this is a common program that they run. And it's actually been in effect for a couple of years. And a lot of the downtowns that have used it have seen progress with small businesses transitioning from the box to an actual brick and mortar in the downtown, which is the goal of the program. So we're hoping to have multiple businesses Be tenants in this box throughout the three-year time period that will have it Currently we have a candle company in there that is doing very well So we have told the tenants though that we do not want them staying for more than six months at a time because we do want it to be a true launch program, so I'm happy to answer any other questions that you'll have Does it come with a bathroom The bathroom is actually in 206 2nd Avenue, so we did get permission from the property owner to use the bathroom that's in the adjacent building, and we have that in writing.

That's okay.

Is that open-ended permission or is it time-limited or anything?

He did the letter for the same three years that we actually have the box, which, again, we probably will have to move the box in a year based on his development of that site. But as of now, the letter allows us to use the bathroom for three years.

Imagine this would be a permitted-type building. The building department would require a permit, maybe. I was thinking about Foundation Anchorage.

Well, we had a nice meeting with the building department, the fire department, and I guess you were there. And everybody came away pleased and happy, but we did not get a permit since it's not technically a building. Okay.

Thank you for that. Any more questions or comments from the board?

Just curious, how are you going to get electricity to it? I mean, is it set up to?

So it's going to be run off a temporary utility pole. Currently, it's connected to the park. But again, that park is transitioning owners. So it'll be owned by the same property owner that is the parking lot owner. Most cities do classify this as a mobile vendor unit, though, when they do their variances.

This is going to be one container?

Just one. And then it'll leave in three years and another city in Alabama will get it.

Three years all we get?

Well, our hope is that we get all of these nice businesses and then they fill up our brick and mortars and we run out of space for them.

Good plan. Any more questions or comments from the board? Any questions or comments from the planning department? No comments. Any questions or comments from the public?

No comments.

All right. This case being presented before the board for its vote, do I have a motion and a second?

I make a motion that we approve the container.

I would like to add a one-year condition to, at the end of one year, resubmit.

Mm-hmm.

That is what I see.

Okay.

I'm sorry. I missed that.

I didn't hear that. I'm sorry.

All right. This case being presented before the board for its vote, please call the roll. Yes. Yes.

Yes. Yes.

Yes. You've been approved.

Thank you all.

Thank you, Kelly. Is there any other business to be presented? Minutes. Minutes. Thank you for that. Are we seeing them?

We're going to do two months in a row. Oh, OK. OK.

I'm sorry. I thought I did.

OK. So we're consolidating the, we're going to vote on two months at a time?

No, the same time.

Pardon me? The next one. OK. Just the next one. OK. So the minutes will be postponed to next month's meeting. All right. Other than that, is there any other business? All right. Do we have a motion to adjourn?

I make the motion to adjourn.

Second. We have a first and a second. Do we need to vote? We don't need to vote on that, do we? No. School's out, y'all.

Thank you.