CINCINNATI — A greatly opposed $150 million development in Hyde Park Square is still waiting for a final vote from Cincinnati City Council. The city's planning commission voted 3-1 in favor of the rezone on March 7.
The planning commission approved the developers' original plan, with the condition that the developers include some of the changes made in their revised plan.
The Hyde Park Neighborhood Council (HPNC) has retained a lawyer, and WCPO was told Monday legal action is not off the table when it comes to the controversial rezoning plan.
“It is proposed 80 or 85-feet tall, depending on what proposal you follow," Matt Fellerhoff, HPNC's attorney, told WCPO. "Which is substantially above the 50-foot zoning minimum, which was established to preserve the character of Hyde Park Square.”
During the planning commission meeting, Vice Mayor Jan-Michele Kearney was the only “no vote” on the commission.
"All around, it’s not a good idea, and the community is so against it," Kearney said at the time.
The plans only needs a simple majority vote to pass the city council. Advocates for the project cite the project’s amenities as benefits for approving the zoning change. The project will include a 90-unit boutique hotel and a multi-family building that will have over 120 units.
Critics say opposition to a zoning change is about more than just Hyde Park’s look and feel. Some are concerned about the precedent it could set if the change is approved.
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Fellerhoff cites Hyde Park’s zoning history and the city’s own “connected communities plan,” which he says upheld Hyde Park’s 50-foot building limitation.
Attorneys for the HPNC also claim that the zoning request hearing was illegal. They say the project should be reviewed by the Zoning Board of Appeals before the planning commission.
"If the demonstration and council (agree) with them, what’s the point of zoning?" Fellerhoff said. "There is the potential for legal action, and we don’t want to go there. What we want is for city council to do the right thing; to require the developer to come back and come up with a responsible plan that doesn’t ruin Hyde Park Square."
This project sits within what's known as an "urban design overlay district," another zoning designation that protects the existing character of an area. If the city council approves the zoning request in this instance, all buildings within the development would be subject to design review.
