JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The city's Planning Commission is recommending denial of a rezoning request that would allow apartments and commercial development on 49 acres along Hodges Boulevard near the intersection of J. Turner Butler Boulevard.
Jacksonville Daily Record reported that the commission voted 4-2 Thursday to turn down the rezoning request, primarily because of the traffic the development would generate in an already fast-growing Jacksonville corridor.
The recommendation goes to Jacksonville City Council, which could still approve the change that would allow the project to be built. It is scheduled to be heard by the council's Land Use and Zoning Committee on June 18 and the full council on June 25.
Hodges Development Group has proposed what it calls a pedestrian-friendly mix of 970 multifamily units and institutional, office, retail and commercial space on property on Hodges across from Windsor Commons.
Access to the development would be off Hodges Boulevard and Glen Kernan Parkway.
Some residents in the area had already expressed their opinion on the project, saying it's not a good idea.
Nearly 500 people have signed an online petition and shared their concerns, which mostly include the traffic it would bring. They say the congestion in the area is already bad and has been for years, so a new development would only make it worse.
The Hodges Boulevard and JTB site is not far from 1,000 acres that the Skinner family is preparing for development at JTB and Interstate 295 for residential, commercial, hotel and office uses.