Proposed North-Central overlay district to be discussed Thursday

COLUMBIA — A public hearing about the controversial proposal to establish an overlay district in North-Central Columbia will be held at Thursday’s Columbia Planning and Zoning Commission meeting.

The meeting starts at 7 p.m. Thursday in the City Council chambers at the Daniel Boone Building, 701 E. Broadway. The hearing is the third item on the agenda.

In the works for 15 years, the North-Central overlay would create another layer of zoning regulations for businesses or residents in the area. Projects would have to go before a city-appointed design review panel that would review development requests to ensure they meet standards of the ordinance, which is intended to create an aesthetically pleasing and consistent appearance in the neighborhood.

The North-Central neighborhood, and the overlay, would have the following boundaries: College Avenue on the east, Ash and Walnut streets on the south, Providence Road on the west and Business Loop 70 on the north.

More than 600 people who own property in the neighborhood were informed of the hearing last month. The commission has already received community responses from Columbia College, the Special Business District, and Jack Waters, general manager of the Columbia Daily Tribune, all of whom have concerns about the overlay regulations.

After the hearing, the commission will hold work sessions to review unresolved concerns and to discuss the proposal’s pros and cons. Any major changes would be the subject of another hearing before the issue is taken to the City Council.

To view the proposed overlay ordinance, click here.