Building Savannah: The latest developments about development
IN AN increasingly common situation, the Metropolitan Planning Commission has ruled in favor of a development by one of its members, Jeff Notrica.
(Notrica did recuse himself from the proceedings this past Nov. 4.)
At issue is a now-vacant lot Notrica owns at Drayton and Henry, comprising three contiguous parcels directly across Drayton Street from the old Sears building.
Notrica was in front of the MPC – on which he also serves – to combine the three parcels into one for-profit parking lot.
But almost everyone involved openly admitted the lot was likely to be developed into a hotel at a later date.
Notrica, the owner of Inman Park Properties, was in the news recently for an unsuccessful and controversial attempt to build a storage facility on East Victory Drive that would require the demolition of a historic building.
Until fairly recently, the parcels at Drayton and Henry featured a 1952 storage warehouse and a 1959 service station, both of which were considered non-contributing structures to the Victorian Neighborhood and both of which have been demolished.
Almost the entire MPC meeting was consumed with this single agenda item, which required three separate votes: one for a change to the Future Land Use Map, one for a zoning change, and the other to approve a Special Use Permit to build a parking lot.
Nearby resident Deborah Lloyd Lewis told the MPC that “there have already been 14 significant wrecks at Drayton and Henry from 2022 to today.”
She expressed concerns about how traffic would be routed in and out of the parking lot in order to avoid more collisions.
The MPC was told that no plan for that is in effect, as the City Traffic Engineering Dept. would have to tackle that issue at a later time.
There is also no firm information on how many spaces the lot would provide, other than "more than 20."
Lloyd also mentioned a busy Short Term Vacation Rental location adjacent to the proposed lot that has a lot of traffic of its own.
“It’s a two-story townhome that was converted to an Airbnb,” she said. “It often has 20 people at a time.”
Ardis Wood, a frequent preservation advocate at local government meetings, told the MPC, “It’s interesting: when people fix up old houses they’re often accused of gentrification, since values rise. However, when investors rezone land from residential to commercial, they are hailed as improving the economy.”
The proposed parking lot, Wood said, “clearly attempts to tip the balance to allow commercial developments to intrude further into residential space, and set a precedent for more of the same… That’s not going to stay parking, it’s going to be developed. I hope we will not be nibbled away.”
MPC Commissioner Dwayne Stephens agreed in principle.
“I have a little bit of reservation on the future land use driving and pointing in the direction of making the entire block commercial,” Stephens said.
The parking lot would “make the path that much simpler to make it commercial in a space that is now primarily residential,” he said.
Resident Jim Hundsrucker also brought up the likelihood that the parking lot will eventually give way to yet another hotel.
He pointed out that a proposed hotel overlay district for the Victorian neighborhood – strongly supported by residents – “has been in limbo for over a year,” suggesting that the proposed regulatory measure be installed first.
“This request has not been presented to membership” of the Victorian Neighborhood Association, he said. “A change of this magnitude would decimate the integrity of the block and of the Victorian Historic District. Combining these lots as commercial is a slippery slope.”
Notrica’s attorney, Philip McCorkle, was plain about the eventual plan for the site.
“I don’t want to mislead anyone. [Notrica] did not buy this property for it to remain a parking lot for eternity. Things are changing in the Victorian District,” he said.
“Some day something will happen with the Sears building, and there will be opportunity in the future for some type of mixed-use commercial development.”
MPC members repeatedly reiterated that if a hotel is eventually proposed for that site, a separate request for a new Special Use Permit would have to be executed and approved regardless.
Despite voicing some concerns, all measures involving the proposed parking lot were approved by the MPC.
In accordance with existing overlay rules, the lot will have to feature a 36-inch high border wall on the street frontage as a buffer to traffic. The MPC also said the developer will need to communicate further with the Victorian Neighborhood Association about the project.