Decatur City Hall

Decatur’s City Commission meets tonight, Monday, March 16. First on the agenda is a request by John Wieland Homes for an amendment to a building ordinance for the 11 townhomes being built at 506 East Howard Avenue.

John Wieland Homes is asking for two exceptions to the High Density Single-Family (HDSF) standards in order to proceed with a plan approved by the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC).

A Decatur Development Department memo says, “During the HPC review, approval was granted to a design that included 45 foot high townhouses and 1 unit smaller than 20 feet in width. There was confusion between the project architect and the preservation planner on which C2 height and unit size standards should be applied to the project. The city is seeking to align the preservation approval and the zoning requirements.”

As a result, John Wieland Homes is requesting the following exceptions:

• The reduction of 1 unit to 16 feet in width.
• An increase in building height to 45 feet

The Planning Commission will also be discussing amendments to the master site plans for Renfroe Middle School and Decatur High School that have been requested by the City Schools of Decatur.

The public will then be invited to comment on agenda action items which include resolutions authorizing applications to the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) for several Livable Centers Initiative (LCI) grants over the next four years. Normally, the ARC solicits grant applications for LCI funds every two years, so the City plans to submit grant requests for a greater number of projects than normal.

The City has prioritized four projects for approval, including streetscape improvements and a road diet on East College Avenue. The City memo states that Avondale Estates will be requesting that College Avenue be narrowed from four lanes to two lanes within their city limits. The purpose of the road diet in Decatur is to keep the number of vehicle lanes consistent with Avondale’s plans and to provide enhanced bicycle and pedestrian facilities along East College Avenue.

Other recommended LCI requests include funding for streetscape improvements on a new interior street that will be built in the proposed Avondale Station mixed-use development and another request for improvements along East Howard Avenue.

There is also a grant request resolution for pedestrian safety and bike trail improvements in an area referenced as Clairemont-Commerce-Church Street.

Another action item on the meeting agenda includes a recommendation to adopt a resolution allowing the city to refinance its outstanding Series 2007 general obligation bonds to take advantage of favorable interest rates.

The commission meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. at City Hall, located at 509 N. McDonough St. All meetings are open to the public.