Zoning board rejects wholesale store, gas station in Inverness

By JON ANDERSON

The Hoover Planning and Zoning Commission in April unanimously rejected a developer’s request to put a big-box wholesale store and gasoline station on 20 acres off Valleydale Road in Inverness.

However, the developer said he plans to appeal the decision to the Hoover City Council, so the issue isn’t over.

The zoning board’s decision came after hearing roughly two hours of discussion and significant opposition from nearby neighborhoods, including Beaumont, Danberry and Inverness Highlands.

Alumni Properties & Investments is seeking to build a 103,000-square-foot big-box wholesale store with a tire center and 16 gasoline pumping stations, plus at least eight other retail buildings, on wooded land at the corner of Valleydale Road and Inverness Center Drive, across from Inverness Corners and next to Inverness Plaza. The preliminary plan included 189,000 square feet of buildings.

The developer, Keith Owens, did not specify the name of the big-box business or other potential tenants, but numerous residents who have had meetings with the developer identified it as a BJ’s Wholesale Club store, and Owens did not refute that assertion.

Alumni Properties and Investments does not need any zoning approval to build the wholesale store because the property already is zoned for planned commercial use. However, the developer does need approval for the gas station, and he told the zoning board that is a critical part of the wholesaler’s business model.

About 100 people attended the April 10 zoning board meeting, and many spoke vehemently against the proposal, citing increased traffic, safety and environmental concerns and a loss of property values for nearby residential areas.

“There is absolutely no need for additional gas pumps or gas stations in this immediate area,” said Gary Kitchen, a resident of The Cottages at Danberry community.

There are six gas stations along U.S. 280 within a mile of this location, and four of them are within half a mile, Kitchen said. There is no need to put unwanted gas stations closer to the residential communities along Valleydale and Inverness Center Drive, he said.

Mike Mazer, president of the Lake Heather Estates Homeowners Association, said residents already are concerned with excessive runoff and sewer contamination of the private 100-acre Lake Heather, and adding a gasoline station with 16 pumps in an area that drains into the lake will add to the problem.

Doug Dickinson, a resident of The Cottages at Danberry, said Inverness Center Drive already is a major cut-through between Valleydale Road and U.S. 280. Adding more traffic, especially truck traffic, could be dangerous because it’s a curvy road with blind spots, he said.

Cody Lytton, director of plant operations for the Danberry at Inverness senior living community immediately behind this proposed commercial site, said he is extremely concerned for the safety of residents.

Lytton questioned the purpose of this development. He’s all for profitability for companies, but “attempting to create profit at the expense of residents and senior citizens entrusted to my care is very disturbing to me,” he said. “I feel like it is shortsighted at best and totally reckless at worst.”

A traffic study conducted by Skipper Consulting for the developer anticipates the new development would add 999 vehicle trips in the midday peak hour and 892 vehicle trips in the afternoon peak hour.

The study recommends a new traffic signal at the Inverness Corners entrance near Milo’s, new turn lanes to get into the development, extension of existing turn lanes and a modification to allow two lanes to turn right off eastbound U.S. 280 onto Valleydale Road.

Hoover City Planner Mac Martin noted that this site has been zoned for commercial development since 1990 and that the city’s comprehensive plans calls for commercial development in this vicinity. He also noted that the developer altered the layout of his development after listening to residents’ concerns in a community meeting in March and agreed to put an 8-foot-tall fence or wall and landscaping shrubbery between the development and the Danberry at Inverness retirement community.

But the zoning board sided with residents. Board member Jason Lovoy said he thought residents came very well prepared and made convincing arguments about why this was not a good idea. Zoning board member Ben Wieseman said he was surprised the developer did not do more to answer the litany of concerns.

Owens said he plans to appeal the rejection to the City Council but declined to comment more about the vote.