Oakwood City Council unanimously approved the rezoning of a 1.27 acre tract of land on Winder Highway from residential to highway business Monday night so a tire shop could build there.
The applicant, Palmetto Flowery Branch-Winder LLC wants to put a Firestone Tire and automotive shop on the land near Walden Apartments and Popeye's Chicken restaurant.
They also asked the council to reduce the number of parking spaces required from 38 to 30 to fit the parcel of land better.
The planning commission recommended approval o both requests and the council agreed.
City Manager Stan Brown said previously another set of apartments was on the lot and that's why it was residential.
"But with the Winder Highway project that took place and also the Walden Apartments at one end and some redevelopment in that area, a lot of the other tracts were rezoned as commercial and multi-family," Brown said. "It's on the Winder Highway corridor, it's very logical to be commercial."
In addition at the meeting, the council voted unanimously to ask the state legislature to approve a 3% increase in the hotel/motel tax, raising the amount from 5% to 8%. Brown said Gainesville and other cities in the area are looking to increase the tax and that the money would go towards tourism development.
