The changes include eliminating a requirement for a minimum number of parking space for new single family homes and most commercial developments. The changes require new businesses to be built close to a sidewalk with no parking lot between the building and the sidewalk.
Under the new code, new pawn shops and check cashing businesses will be banned from the city. Current pawn shops and check cashing businesses will remain in Norwood. Mayor Williams said the city is trying to attract more mixed use developments to the city that would include retail and residential space.
The zoning changes pave the way for residential units in some buildings zoned for commercial use. "It's great. It brings more business to Norwood," said Mike Meadors, whose leading a team renovating a building at the corner of Ross Ave. and Montgomery Rd.
City officials said the building sat empty for 13 years due to zoning code restrictions. Now that the code has changed, the building is being renovated to include five apartments on the second floor and a storefront on the first. Meadors added," I brought some investors in, they're doing other properties in Norwood."
Mayor Williams said the zoning changes will cut out a lot of red tape for developers. Williams said the developers of the University Station project near Xavier University experienced months of delays when applying for building permits. That project will include student
housing, office and retail space. "Under this new zoning, they could have planned this in two weeks and got building permits and started on it." City officials said they hope the changes will make the area more appealing to developers and make the city more walkable. "We're in competition with the entire region in this economy. And we're going to do whatever we can to encourage that and make Norwood a more attractive place to do business," said city law director, Josh Berkowitz.
This article was on Local 12 website 4-5-2013.
No comments:
Post a Comment