Council asked to rezone for C-Street residential developments  

Parking on Commercial Street was a sticking point for some neighbors when Springfield City Council held a public hearing on two rezoning requests for residential developments at its regular meeting last night. 

Vecino project 
The Vecino Group LLC has plans to construct a 41,267-square-foot mixed-use building at 411 W. Commercial St. The development would include 42 units of affordable housing, along with commercial and retail spaces. A conditional use permit for the project was applied for by Dan Johnson & Associates LLC. 

Bruce Adib-Yazdi, representing developer The Vecino Group, described the project as providing workforce housing at an estimated $595 per month for a one-bedroom unit and $750 for two bedrooms. 

The 42-unit development would provide no parking, although a plan drafted by the city’s Public Works Department adds 35 pull-in on-street parking spaces nearby, between Campbell and Main avenues. 

The conditional use permit is required because the building would exceed 10,000 square feet in size and would be four stories, higher than the three-story maximum for the Commercial Street Historic District. The city’s Landmarks Board gave its stamp of approval to the design, but the Planning & Zoning Commission recommended denial of the conditional use permit because of parking concerns. 

Councilmember Derek Lee, a professional engineer, estimated a deficit of about 100 parking spaces from the project. City Manager Jason Gage clarified that number is likely between the Institute of Transportation Engineers model estimate of 62 and a city code estimate of 86. 

A dozen people signed up to speak about the development, and opinions were split. Supporters praised the plan for providing needed workforce housing, while opponents expressed concern about the lack of parking. 

Lee told Adib-Yazdi the development would take a disproportionate amount of available parking, but those who are currently in the district have worked hard to provide the parking resources that are now in place. 

“I would just like for you to address that in some way, if you can do it in garages or you can do it some other way where you have some skin in the game, where it’s not all coming from them,” Lee said. “The study that I saw showed that you’re providing absolutely none. You’re 100% requiring the public resources that other people have put in.” 

Adib-Yazdi pointed out that the city has designated the district not to require parking, so it’s incumbent upon both the district and the city to come up with long-term parking solutions. 

Speaking in favor of the project was Joe Gidman, owner of three C-Street businesses: Cafe Cusco, Van Gogh’s Eeterie and Chabom Tea & Spices. 

Gidman said yesterday was his 10-year anniversary of opening his first business on C-Street. 

“I probably create the worst parking situation on the street to begin with because in 10 years I can tell you that my businesses have increased year over year 20 to 30%,” he said. 

Gidman said he does not see a parking problem, but as the employer of 62 people who work on the street, he believes workforce housing is. 

“I need a place for my employees to live that they can afford, and I need to not lose them to smaller towns or other cities or other parts of the city,” he said. “This is the perfect situation for them. It’s affordable, it’s close to businesses; I can tell you it’s a need that I have.” 

Christine Schilling opposed the project because of its lack of parking. She said that she has lived on C-Street for a dozen years and has developed five properties there. 

“Every single piece of property that I developed, I provided parking for,” she said. “I think that in today’s climate, that’s a realistic expectation and a realistic consideration that a developer should offer.” 

Council is scheduled to vote on the conditional use permit July 24. 

Jefferson and Benton 
Another rezoning measure on C-Street presented last night was requested by Titus Williams LLC and Historic Commercial Development LLC. The developers are seeking to rezone 2 acres at 1630 N. Jefferson Ave. and 1635 N. Benton Ave. to a planned development from single-family residential, center city and urban conservation district designations. 

The plan calls for a 72-unit multifamily dwelling in a townhouse architectural style with individual garages located under each unit. There also would be 13 parallel parking spaces on interior streets within the development. 

The project has been three to four years in the making, Williams told council, and started with plans for a 270-unit high-density multifamily project. He said he expects the project to be completed by the end of 2024. 

Rand Cummings, president of the Midtown Neighborhood Association, addressed council to praise the developers and city officials for the rapport they built during discussions. He did raise a concern about parking needs bleeding into the neighborhood, and he asked the developers and council to address the issue now, since it’s early in the project. 

Council also is scheduled to vote on the zoning measure at its July 24 meeting.