Petersburg City Council to consider controversial plan for lofts

A Richmond-based developer launched a Web site this week promoting a Petersburg housing project that is facing opposition from residents and is scheduled to go before City Council tomorrow.

Last week, some Petersburg residents launched their own site against the Hinton Street Lofts project, where they list letters and e-mails that residents have sent to city officials and a link to a petition opposing a rezoning change the developer needs to move forward with the project.

The opponents have also created a "No Hinton Street Rezoning" Facebook page that has nearly 100 members and where it says the project is "poorly planned and will be a detriment to the adjoining neighborhoods."

A large crowd is likely at a public hearing tomorrow on the rezoning of the 225 Hinton Street property. Council is expected to vote on issues after the hearing in what would be a needed step for the $15 million project to move forward.

The hearing was postponed last month after residents loudly voiced their concerns about the downtown project.

In July, the city's Planning Commission recommended denial of the developer's request for rezoning. The project, proposed by 225 Hinton Street LLC, an affiliate of Richmond-based Franklin Development Group, is part of a revitalization plan the city has for the South Market Street corridor. The Petersburg city manager's office and some council members have expressed support for the plan, which calls for the redevelopment of the old warehouse into more than 100 oneand two-bedroom apartment units.

The project could bring a tax base to the area because it would attract new residents downtown while the property would bring $135,000 in real estate property taxes, according to the developer.

Willie Graham, who lives a few blocks from the project site, said more than 350 residents have signed a petition against the project.

Graham, an architectural historian, said a big concern is that the building is not in keeping with the revitalization plan. Residents fear that the vast majority of the proposed units would not have windows, he said.

"It is going to be such an awful place to live that who would want to live there, when there are plenty of other nice places elsewhere," Graham said.

Residents are also concerned about the fate of Michaels Textile, a longtime tenant of 225 Hinton Street, which has about two years remaining on its lease and could be forced to move if the rezoning request is successful.

City officials, however, are pushing for the project along the Market Street Corridor in downtown, and the redevelopment of several other nearby warehouses, some of which are already under way. Officials said they expect greater demand for apartment units, particularly with the expansion at Fort Lee.

Contact Luz Lazo at (804) 649-6058 or .