OLS parking lot receives approval
Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church received an OK from the Homewood City Council for the development of a parking lot at 2927 Central Ave.
Their request to rezone the lot from commercial to institutional zoning was denied by the council in May, even after a 6-0 favorable recommendation from the Planning Commission. At the May 11 City Council meeting, Councilor Andy Gwaltney said the property sits on one of the city’s most beautiful thoroughfares, and he said using the space as a parking lot didn’t make sense to him.
The item was again on the agenda at the Nov. 30 City Council meeting, and this time, representatives from the church brought renderings that showed pedestrians walking down a sidewalk with colorful bushes and green grass and trees on the property. In the design, the parking lot is elevated so that a person walking on the sidewalk or driving down Central Avenue sees landscaping and does not see much of the parking lot.
Their proposal includes 40 parking spaces with steps down to Central Avenue, which will make it available for those who want to park in the lot to go to local shops and eateries or to Central Park when the church is not having a service.
The church bought the property last year for $1.1 million, even though it was zoned commercial in the office building district. Charles Ferlisi, who was at the meeting presented the plans for OLS, said nobody at the time thought zoning would be a problem.
“I don’t think anybody could make anything else work there, other than an institution that can pay that kind of money for a parking lot,” he said.
The Homewood Public Library, which is on the other side of the church across Oxmoor Road, offers overflow parking for those attending OLS services. With the library’s recent expansion, though, Ferlisi said he was concerned about long-term availability. This parking lot also requires those who use it to cross a busy street.
Tim Lacey, an OLS parishioner, spoke at the public hearing in favor of the rezone. He and Monsignor Martin Muller did a study that timed walk distances, he said. He said that someone walking to the church from the farthest distance of the library parking lot encountered about a six-minute walk. On the other hand, someone walking from the proposed parking lot at 2927 Central Ave. to the church would have a three-minute walk.
“So it’s going to be very convenient and much more usable,” Lacey said. “Keeping people from parking in the library parking lot and walking across the street seems to be a much better situation for everyone involved, particularly on Sunday mornings.”
To help ensure City Council approval of the rezoning request, the representatives from Our Lady of Sorrows proffered that they would stick to the plans presented to the council. Any other use of the property in the future would have to go back to the Planning Commission and City Council.
The council voted 8-1 in favor of the rezone. Gwaltney was the only dissenting vote. Council President Alex Wyatt and Councilor John Hardin abstained from the vote.
The next City Council meeting will be Dec. 14.