Mason land plan tabled until August

A motion to re-zone 49.68 acres of property owned by the Masonic Home of Missouri was tabled last night by the Planning and Zoning Commission. After a lengthy discussion of the proposal, the commission decided that a better plan was necessary before a final decision could be made.

The property surrounds the current Masonic Home on Masonic Drive just north of US 63 in northeastern Columbia.

The property is divided into three tracts. As proposed, tract A would become a planned office district, while tracts B and C would become planned business districts.

Commission members addressed several concerns with the proposal, including concern that the Masons’ plan for the land was vague. The city hoped to have a better idea of how the land would be used before it was zoned. To develop a more specific plan, the various organizations that own the property will have to agree. All of that will take time and the city is pushing to annex the property soon.

The only recommendation the organizations have suggested for the land is a retirement home for the Masons and their families, similar to Lenoir Woods retirement community. There is no time frame on that plan.

“I just think the city staff is requesting us to do something, and we’re trying to comply, but it is hard to comply without a plan,” Karin Bell, executive director of the Masonic Home of Missouri, said.

The decision will be held until the Planning and Zoning Commission’s meeting on Aug. 23, 2007.