Despite objection from residents in the Southdowns area Wednesday, the East Baton Rouge Parish Metropolitan Council approved a modified version of Rouzan in a nine to three majority.
The decision allows for the 119-acre plot nestled in the hub of Baton Rouge to be re-zoned from an A-1 Single Family Residential to a mixed-use Traditional Neighborhood Development. Located on the south side of Perkins Road, the undeveloped pasture, also known as the Ford Property, has been the topic of discussion among planners, city-parish officials and neighboring residents for some time.
After months of negotiation, the re-zone applicant, Tommy Spinosa, agreed to scale down the number of residential units in the proposal from 800 units to 750 units. Spinosa, Gulf Coast region developer for the project, originally called for 400 single-family residential lots and 400 medium-density residential lots.
Neighboring residents opposed to the proposal originally stipulated Spinosa build only 480 single-family units, but later settled for 600 units.
Elizabeth “Boo” Thomas, president and CEO of the Center for Planning and Excellence, said residents did not agree to the 700 units during discussion with the negotiation panel, a panel appointed after the proposal’s second deferral. Thomas, urban planner, said she was asked to serve on the panel as a fair and impartial negotiator. She said at the last panel meeting, Spinosa agreed to reduce the number of units to 700, with flexibility to increase or decrease that amount by 10 percent.
Additionally, neighboring residents failed in their negotiations with Spinosa to decrease the 100,000 square feet allotted by the plan for commercial development in Rouzan.
Councilman Wayne Carter voted against the proposal because he said he feels a plan of 750 units is too dense and should be lowered to 600 units, allowing for wider streets and more green space. He said angry residents presented legitimate complaints to the developer.
“If you think about putting 800 units on about 100 acres of land, parking becomes an issue too,” Carter said.
In addition to density, traffic topped the list of resident concerns. Carter said he urged residents to draft an independent traffic and sewer studies to compare with the Baton Rouge Department of Public Works’ study. He said while the developer may have received the council’s approval, neighboring residents still have the chance to have their voices heard if they complete the independent studies.
“If there was a discrepancy, in my opinion, I would think the Planning Commission and DPW would have to ask the Metro Council to reconsider the vote,” he said.
Councilman Darrell Ourso said he voted in favor of Rouzan because it fit within the parameter of the Unified Development Code with no overwhelming, compelling reason against it.
“You will never have a situation that is 100 percent agreeable,” Ourso said. “It fits the rules of the UDC, and that was the basis for my vote.”
Ourso said he foresees the city moving forward, not only with Rouzan, but with other small tracts of land that will probably be controversial to develop.
“It is bringing to Baton Rouge a sense of community within a more defined area,” he said.
In the center of the storm for some time, Dr. William Gladney, Southside Civic Association board member, said the neighborhood community has been concerned for years about the fate of the Ford Property. He said more than 1,700 opposing residents signed a petition. Gladney said despite neighborhood efforts, a petition with more he thought the board’s compromising approach would pay off.
“For me, the two and a half months of working on this for three or four hours a day was, in a way, not a complete loss,” Gladney said. “I feel we fought for a position that was a fair position.”
Although the general implementation is scheduled to go before the Planning Commission, Gladney said the situation does not look hopeful.
“The planning commission is extremely unsympathetic to neighborhood association,” he said. “This whole neighborhood feels a great sense of loss.”
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Contact Natalie Messina at [email protected]