GAINESVILLE – The Gainesville City Council ended the 2017 calendar year with unanimous approval of a pair of similar, but unrelated, requests that had been working their way through the annexation/rezoning process for several months.
The first dual approval involved just over half-an-acre on Browns Bridge Road, across from Carriage Kia. This site was annexed into the city and then rezoned as General-Business at the request of Pro Building Systems.
The stated intent for the property is to allow for construction of a parking lot to accompany a 21,168-square foot auto collision center being built on the property adjacent.
The second tandem approval involved a property less than a mile away: the 0.98-acre site at the northwest corner of Memorial Park Drive and Old Flowery Branch Road.
Chris Paxton brought the request on behalf of Jack Frost, owner of Memorial Park Funeral Home (across the street from the subject property), and said that nine 2-bedroom, 1-bath rental apartments would be constructed on the site.
Mr. Frost told commissioners that he intends to manage the properties himself and stated that several of his employees at the funeral home had expressed interest in renting units because of the close proximity to their work.
The request for annexation into the city and rezoning of the tract to R-II was unanimously approved by the council.
