The latest version of Be Kind & Merciful company’s plans for commercial development at the busy traffic corner of Sunshine Street and National Avenue failed to gain a majority of Springfield Planning & Zoning commissioners’ votes on Thursday night.
Commissioner Dan Scott is a longtime downtown developer and preservationist. He was one of the two commissioners voting in favor of Be Kind & Merciful’s request.
Scott highlighted the tension left by decades of traditional zoning rules that strictly isolate single-family homes from commercial uses. In contrast, Springfield’s two-year-old comprehensive plan, Forward SGF, calls for city neighborhoods to have more mixed-use integration.
Scott said, “The tough part that we have is we’ve only had two or three, maybe, at most, of these types of proposals with Forward SGF that have attempted to make this integration. And it’s a tough duty.”
Thursday’s vote marks the third time that a version of Be Kind & Merciful’s proposal has been rejected by Planning & Zoning since the project was announced two years ago, prompting strong opposition from University Heights residents and homeowners.
But City Council has final say over approving or rejecting the rezoning request for Sunshine and National. The issue is expected to go before them on September 23.
