BZA halts planned 'private dormitory' project in Northwest Auburn

Northwest Auburn residents broke into applause after the Auburn Board of Zoning Adjustment shot down an appeal to a private dormitory interpretation for a proposed project in the area.

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The BZA voted unanimously last night against an appeal to Planning Director Forrest Cotten’s interpretation that the majority of the proposed project fell under a private dormitory use and not multifamily housing.

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Developers for the project, which was planned for property located off Richland Road near the intersection of Alberta Street and Judd Avenue in Northwest Auburn, cannot move forward with the project as currently designed, but do retain the right to appeal the decision in Circuit Court.

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The apartment complex in discussion, The Haven at Auburn, planned for 180 units and 592 beds on 18 acres of property in the Redevelopment District (RDD) of Northwest Auburn. Of those units, Cotten interpreted 60 percent of them to be purpose-built student housing.

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Developers submitted a conditional use request of a multi-unit development for the project, which is required for this district, but Cotten interpreted the floor plans fell under the private dormitory use, which isn’t permitted in RDD.

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“The simple way of looking at it is if you were a family unit, and you were in the rental market, would this meet your family’s needs in any way?” Cotten said. “The answer is no, and I think that’s obvious.”

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Russell Balch, an attorney representing the current owner of the property, disagreed with Cotten. He argued that the property is outside of the downtown area and is distant from the campus. He also said that the ordinance was nonspecific and didn’t include the criteria that Cotten used for his interpretation.

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“Nobody had any notice about what those standards were going to be,” Balch said. “For instance, the size of the bedrooms compared to multi-family units, the ordinance says nothing. The absence of a master bedroom, the ordinance says nothing. The size of the bathrooms, which you describe as relatively small, it’s not mentioned in the ordinance. The ratio of common space to private space, it’s not mentioned in the ordinance. The bed density per acre, it is not mentioned in the ordinance.”

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These were all standards that Cotten used in his interpretation. However, Cotten argued that including each standard in the zoning ordinance wouldn’t be possible.

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“It is not a black and white science,” he said. “It’s a little bit of black on one side, a little bit of white on the other, and a whole lot of gray in between.”

One common factor in student housing is that students can lease by the bed instead of by the unit. When asked if this is how The Haven planned to structure leases, Balch responded with uncertainty.

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“You should know that!” responded members of the crowd, all of whom voiced opposition to the development.

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Residents of the Richland Road community spoke during the public hearing about why they felt the development would encroach on their community. 

That student housing would move into Northwest Auburn was a major concern voiced by residents during public meetings for the Northwest Auburn Neighborhood Plan, which was recently adopted by the City Council.

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Many expressed concerns about traffic on the narrow road and the possibility of college students driving above the speed limit. Others worried that students would eventually abandon the apartment complex, and it would become Section 8 housing.

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After the board voted and the meeting ended, applause erupted from the audience. Many got up to hug one another, expressing their happiness over the decision.

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“All we have over there is family housing,” said James Talley, whose house abuts the property of the proposed development. “Everybody over there is a family.”

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Talley’s next-door neighbor, Terry Sturdivant, agreed.

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“We can’t do this here,” Sturdivant said. “I’m not against growth, just not in certain places.”

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I wrote this article and took photos for an assignment with The Auburn Villager.