A little after 1:30 p.m. Monday Hope Planning and Zoning Commission voted to approve a special use permit request by Hope Public Schools which would allow for the building of a multi-sport complex along the southern part of the Bill Clinton Bypass.
The meeting can be seen in its entirety on the City of Hope Facebook page.
After an hour and a half of hearing from Hope Public Schools Superintendent Jonathan Crossley and a number of owners of property and residents from the area, the seven-member commission voted 4-3 in favor of allowing a facility that contains a softball/baseball field and tennis courts to be located in an area that is zoned as R-2 Medium Residential.
After Allen Flowers moved to approve the request and Linda Clark seconded, Commissioners voted by roll call. The aye votes included Allen Flowers, Catherine Cook, Vice-mayor and Commission Chair Kiffinea Talley and Linda Clark. The no votes included Mike Smith, Judy Watson and Cindy Ford.
After the vote, a commenter noted that Talley and Clark had abstained from voting during a January 27th meeting but voted in the meeting today. Talley said that abstaining was up to the choice of the commissioner, and she was choosing to vote today. Talley and Clark are both employed by Hope Public Schools. Both were told during a City Board meeting February 4th by City Attorney Randal Wright that since they did not have direct financial interest in whether Hope Public Schools received the special use permit it requested they did not have to recuse themselves from voting on the matter.
As was the case during the January 27th meeting, the boardroom in Hope City Hall was packed with audience members, many of whom were property owners and residents with the location of the proposed multi-sport complex, who expressed concerns about crime and noise. In the earlier meeting, the commission voted 3-2 against granting the special permit. Because it did so without citing findings, Hope Public Schools could resubmit the request and chose to do so.
Among those speaking in favor of the complex Monday was Hempstead County Economic Development Corporation Director Anna Powell, who said the complex contributed to community development and education development. She also referred to her own memories of living in a neighborhood near a high school. “I could hear all of the practices, the band and Friday night lights, all of things. Before I became a part of that, I so enjoyed seeing that from my home and feeling like I was there even if my mom and dad didn’t allow me to go to the game,” she said.
The Hope Planning and Zoning Commission’s approval will be presented to the City of Hope Board of Directors as an advisory finding. The city board has final approval of the commission’s decision to grant Hope Public Schools a special use permit and pave the way for the building of the multi-sport complex.
Also on the agenda for Monday's meeting was a request by Joel Hendry of Hendry Oil for a rezoning of an area at 2602 North Hazel from I-1 Heavy Industrial to C-2 Highway Commercial for the purposes of building a truck stop and convenience store. Hendry said the location will be able to accommodate at least four long-hauler trucks as they refuel with an overnight capacity for parking 25 to 30 on six acres.
The motion to accept the rezoning request was approved by unanimous voice vote. This approval will also be presented to the Hope City Board.