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Decatur City Commission to consider a conditional use permit for boutique inn

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Decatur City Commission to consider a conditional use permit for boutique inn

Walt Drake expresses opposition to a proposed boutique inn during the Decatur City Commission meeting on Monday, Oct. 17, 2022. Photo by Dean Hesse.
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This story has been updated.

Decatur, GA — The Decatur City Commission will meet on Monday, Nov. 7, for a work session at 6:30 p.m., followed by the regular meeting at 7:30 p.m. The meetings will be held in person at Decatur City Hall, 509 N. McDonough Street, as well as Zoom.

During the regular meeting, the city commission will consider a conditional use permit to allow an eight-bedroom lodging house to operate as a boutique inn at 620 Pinetree Drive.

The work session will focus on the Decatur Tourism Bureau’s annual report.

To access the meeting, follow these instructions:

To view the agenda, click here.

This meeting will be held in-person. Members of the public wishing to participate during either the “Public Comment” or “Requests and Petitions” portions of the meeting may attend the meeting in one of two ways:

1. Attend in-person by coming to Decatur City Hall, 509 N. McDonough St.

2. Register in advance at https://zoom.us/j/95036361521. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. You may also participate by phone by calling (929) 205-6099 and entering the meeting ID (The 11-digit number shown in the Zoom registration link.)

NOTE – This meeting will utilize virtual meeting technology. We cannot guarantee it will operate as planned. If your participation must be a matter of public record, attend the meeting in person or email your comments to City Manager Andrea Arnold at [email protected] by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, November 7th.

Members of the public may also view the live broadcast of the Decatur City Commission meeting at https://www.decaturga.com/citycommission/page/streaming-video

The city commission held a public hearing on the application on Oct. 17, but delayed voting on the item after the commissioners requested more information from the applicant.

Talia and Joe Bunting submitted a request for a conditional use permit at 620 Pinetree Drive, which falls under the R-60 zoning district. It will be known as the Queen Bee Inn.

The Buntings are currently under contract to purchase the property.

In Bunting’s conversations with the neighbors, the three concerns that have come up are trash, parking and traffic, she said.

“We don’t expect that this would really impact those things in any major way,” Bunting said. “The proposed inn is compatible with the existing residential, religious and educational uses of adjacent and nearby properties. Residents of adjacent properties, as well as visitors and staff at the nearby churches, will continue to benefit from the usability of their respective properties unhindered.”

The Queen Bee Inn would have eight cars max at any given time and 16 guests. Bunting doesn’t expect the inn to have a big impact on traffic. She added that parking has been a concern. She is aiming to have six parking spots on the property.

“It is important to me to make sure we have a solution, so we’re not adding to that. I have begun the process of looking for alternative spots should we run out of parking spots,” Bunting said.

As for trash, the garbage bins would be in an enclosure behind the inn.

The planning commission recommended approval of the conditional use permit with conditions. The city commission requested additional information from Bunting about impervious surface, parking plan, parking agreement, the maximum number of events per year, a definition of a micro-event and plans to provide alcohol.

In other business, the city commission will consider an alcoholic beverage license application for Independent Distillery Company, which moved from 731 E. College Ave. to 547 E. College Ave. The property owner had to be relocated due to the Halo East Decatur mixed-use development.

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