Since that time, the proposal from Be Kind & Merciful LLC development company has evolved several times. Most recently, it was recommended by city staff but failed to win endorsement from the Springfield Planning & Zoning Commission by a 6-to-2 vote on August 22.
Rezoning proposal amended Monday night — a surprise to many
"We felt blindsided by this, I think," said Susan Robinson at Monday's City Council meeting.
Robinson is secretary of the University Heights Neighborhood Association. She commented following a 35-minute debate among Springfield City Council and city management staffers Monday night.
All that talk focused on the latest version of the proposal to rezone 2.6 acres of land at the high-traffic corner of Sunshine Street and National Avenue.
Developers Ralph Duda and Anthony Tolliver with Be Kind & Merciful LLC want Council to pass a rezoning bill (which you can read, as presented on Monday, October 7, here). The land they bought on the corner is currently zoned single-family residential. It could become general retail, with a conditional overlay district that would impose extra restrictions on the types of business that could be done on the property.
Here's Robinson again: "So, I don’t know when Council was notified about it, but we had no knowledge of any type of amendment.”
A three-and-a-half-page amendment to the rezoning bill — dated Friday, October 4 — was a surprise for many on Monday night after it was introduced by Zone 2 Councilmember Abe McGull. The move came following a crowded public hearing at a Council meeting last month.
McGull said, "The developer got with staff, and that person agreed to further restrict that property, the uses for that property.”
Earlier this month, many observers thought Council would finally take an up-or-down vote on for-profit redevelopment at Sunshine & National. But McGull argued that an amendment would represent a productive dialogue between developers and the neighborhood.
McGull said, “These were concerns of the residents of that area, and I think it was a valid compromise.”
According to the amendment, if Be Kind & Merciful gets their rezoning request, they wouldn’t be allowed to build any sort of tattoo parlor, marijuana shop or single-story retail strip center with a flat roof — along with 36 other forbidden commercial uses.
A convoluted discussion of proposed rezoning amendment
Discussion of the prohibited uses under the amendment was convoluted. Here’s City Attorney Jordan Paul being questioned by Councilmember Craig Hosmer.
Paul: “We got the general use restrictions from the developer, but then tried to make sure we converted those into terms that are consistent with our code.”
Hosmer: “So this was language from the developer?”
Paul: “Not the language, but the concept — the uses, I guess would be a way to say it.”
Hosmer: “And has the information been shared with the neighborhood, the amendment?
Paul: “I don’t bel — ehhh — I mean, to the extent that these have been volunteered in public meetings, I would say yes. They’ve not seen an actual document, though.”
Hosmer is an attorney and former state lawmaker. He often argues that the City of Springfield gives developers too much say in public policy, without giving equal weight to the voices of city neighborhoods and residents — or adequately seeking out those voices.
Ultimately, after a somewhat heated discussion in which Mayor Ken McClure had to briefly pound his gavel and call for order, Council voted 5-to-3 to accept the amendment. They’ll debate it at Council’s next regular meeting on October 21.
Hosmer was joined by Councilmembers Monica Horton and Brandon Jenson in rejecting it; Councilmember McGull was joined by Mayor McClure and Councilmembers Callie Carroll, Heather Hardinger and Derek Lee in passing the amendment. Councilmember Matt Simpson recused himself to avoid a conflict of interest.
Neighborhood leaders say they're not giving up
The University Heights Neighborhood Association leadership says they’re appealing a court case they recently lost, in an attempt to block the rezoning. They also say that should Council vote to pass the rezoning, they’re prepared to take steps seeking a city-wide referendum to block Be Kind & Merciful’s plans.
(A similar referendum took place in November 2022 regarding a rezoning request that would have allowed a mixed-use development in southeast Springfield's Galloway neighborhood. The rezoning proposal failed.)
Jeff Carney, president of UHNA, spoke to Ozarks Public Radio Monday night prior to the reveal of that restrictive amendment on the proposed rezoning.
Carney said, “The developer’s not going away, or whoever he sells the property to. It will be back. So we have to make sure we have our ducks in a row no matter what happens tonight.”
For this particular rezoning to pass, however, a simple majority of council members voting yes won’t be enough.
City Clerk Anita Cotter explained: "We do have a protest petition on this bill as well. It was found to be sufficient at 44 percent. A copy of the supplemental explanation sheet has been provided to you. Therefore a supermajority, or six votes, will be required for passage.”
City ordinance requires at least 30 percent of nearby property owners to protest a rezoning plan for that six-vote requirement to take effect.
And finally, Ozarks Public Radio briefly spoke to developer Ralph Duda on Friday, ahead of Monday night’s meeting, and again approached Duda and Tolliver Monday night following the adoption of the amendment. They declined to comment.
