An ordinance that would prohibit certain retail and restaurant uses along Block 154 — located between Elm Avenue, and Campbell, Irving, and Broad streets — was approved by City Council on Monday night.
The ordinance (O-2-18) was introduced during the governing body’s regular meeting in January before being tabled at the February meeting. The Planning Board endorsed the changes during its February meeting ahead of the public hearing and final vote at Monday’s meeting of City Council. There was no comment from the public or members of City Council during the public hearing.
The measure changes the Central Business District Redevelopment Plan so that permitted principal uses for sub-districts CBD-1, CBD-2, and CBD-3, exclude “convenience retail uses; specialty and comparative retail uses; restaurants, including plenary liquor licenses, and eating and drinking establishments, including but not limited to, fast food, deli, and sandwich shops.”
Block 154 includes five individual lots: RSI bank (Lot 2.01) on Irving Street; Word of Life Apostolic Church (Lot 1) at the corner of Elm Avenue and Irving Street; the state Fireman’s Mutual Benevolent Association (FMBA) office (Lot 9) at the corner of Campbell Street and Elm Avenue; an office/retail complex (Lot 7.01) along Campbell, and a Parking Authority-owned parking lot (Lot 6.01) along Broad Street.
The Central Business District Redevelopment Plan originally was adopted in 1998 and was amended dozens of times over the years before being combined in 2013 with the Lower Main Street Urban Renewal Plan, which also had been amended over the years. The entire redevelopment plan adopted in 2013 can be found in this ordinance (O-6-13).
Years ago, the area of Block 154 was identified as a possible site for a parking deck and office space development although discussion was very preliminary at the time. Talk centered around the possibility of becoming included in the state’s Urban Transit Hub Tax Credit program, which sought to attract office space in proximity to railroad stations.