Tucker, GA — Proposed zoning changes to Tucker’s downtown area dominated the city council meeting on April 8.

Community Development Director Courtney Smith presented the second read of an ordinance that would increase density and building heights in Tucker’s downtown area.

Maximum density would increase from 24 to 35 units per acre. The buildings along Main Street could increase from two to three stories further than 200 feet away from the curb, and the rest of the downtown area between LaVista Road and Lawrenceville Highway from three stories for the sections north of Railroad Avenue and four stories south of Railroad Avenue to five stories for all sections.

Courtney Smith stated that there have been no multifamily developments in the downtown area, so her department recommends increasing density. In response to a question from council member Alexis Weaver about a townhome development in the downtown area, Smith said it does not meet the city’s definition of multifamily housing.

Members of the public attending the meeting were primarily opposed to the changes as written, but the idea of increasing density and the proposal before the council received some support.

During public comment, Crayton Lankford of the Tucker Downtown Development Authority said that the DDA supports the zoning changes. Lankford said that the DDA wants to encourage 500 new housing units to be built within a reasonable walking distance of downtown, and in the DDA’s meetings with developers they have said that increased heights would make multifamily housing projects financially feasible.

Lankford added that tax breaks can be used to negotiate for additional green space and affordable housing units.

Resident and real estate agent Leslie Green said she would like to see the changes to encourage downtown development.

Former city councilmember Ann Lerner, who has frequently spoken about the need for increased density downtown and elsewhere in Tucker, said that she favors it in principle but feels that the changes must be more carefully thought out. 

“Spend the time to be more intentional to have a lasting impact,” Lerner said.

Matthew Lee, Executive Director of the Tucker-Northlake Community Improvement District, said that when he speaks to developers, they are concerned with parking, sanitation, and public safety. He doesn’t believe that increasing density will necessarily have the desired effect.

Charlton Allen of Main Street Tucker Alliance said that the changes don’t reflect what the Tucker community wanted when his organization surveyed them before the city was incorporated.

Allen said that Tucker’s downtown currently has destination restaurants where people socialize and that the city shouldn’t create a five-story tunnel with buildings that could be in Decatur, Brookhaven, or other nearby cities.

“Tucker downtown right now is a classic…You know where you are,” Allen said.

Mayor Frank Auman proposed amendments to the ordinance to remove references to minimum heights and changing the ordinance to allow developers to ask for more height under a special land use permit (SLUP) rather than raising heights across the board.

“I don’t want to see a five-story rectangular block plonked down next to the park. I certainly don’t want to see one on Main Street,” Auman said.

Auman said that including a mechanism for requesting more height would allow developers to propose plans that work economically for them and would also allow the council to see them before approving them.

“It’s our job to solve problems,” Auman said. 

Weaver and council member Vinh Nguyen added a motion to allow maximum density with the addition of 10% workforce housing.

“There’s very good research that says increasing density through multi-family housing without any consideration for cost increases housing costs,” Weaver said. Weaver added that her suggestion was a bonus, not a requirement.

“People like to live here partially because they can afford to live here,” Weaver said. 

Weaver added that workforce housing is defined as between 80-120% of area median income, and affordable is defined as paying no more than 30% of income for housing, adding that the latter is difficult to get at a market rate anywhere in the country.

Weaver said that the workforce housing bonus is not low income and not affordable per the Housing and Urban Development definition. Weaver said it was important to discuss those things, but that should be in the context of the entire city.

Auman characterized the amendment as interfering with the market and added that people moving into the new housing were likely coming from outside Tucker.

Weaver and Nguyen’s motion failed 4 to 2.

Councilmember Amy Trocchi said that she wants affordable housing but that she wants it within an overall affordable housing plan for the city. Trocchi added that she also supports using SLUPs to see proposals but felt that the council should take more time to consider the proposed changes.

Weaver said that she also thinks that flexibility with height requirements could work but that she got the text of it just before the meeting started and would like more time to consider the implications and possibilities.

Auman said that he feels that a comprehensive plan will take time and that there are benefits to acting on the downtown district that day.

Auman’s amendments failed 3 to 3.  Auman, council member Robert Orlando, and Virginia Rece voted in favor, Trocchi, Nguyen, and Weaver voted against. Council member Cara Schroeder was absent.

The ordinance change as originally written failed 6-0.

In other business:

— City finances were also a feature of the April 8 meeting. City Manager John McHenry presented the first draft of the city’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget to the city council, and Finance Director Beverly Hilton gave a wrap-up of the city’s spending of Special Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) I funds.

McHenry said that the draft of the FY 2025 budget was written after department heads met with him and the finance director. The next steps in the process will be two budget workshops on April 22 and May 20, followed by a first and second reading and public hearings at the May 28 and June 10 city council meetings. The budget must be adopted before July 1.

Auman pointed out that the city is still spending American Rescue Plan Act funds on specific types of projects. ARPA along with SPLOST has enabled the city to fund several projects. However, all the ARPA money must be spent by 2026.

Auman said that the city will have to adjust to working within its normal sources of revenue.

“We will be having conversations where we say, wait a minute, we were spending $20 million a year on capital projects. That’s not normal, and that’s going to be coming to an end,” Auman said. 

Hilton presented a wrap-up accounting of the funds the city received from SPLOST I, which passed in 2017. Tucker received $34.2 million in revenues and has spent $31.4 million, including $20.5 million on roads and drainage, $5.3 million on sidewalks and trails, and $5.6 million on parks and recreation. SPLOST II passed in 2023.

— Guy Van Ort, who is chair of the Tucker Civic Association’s Lifelong Community Project, announced to the city council that Tucker has received a designation as an age-friendly community from the American Association of Retired Persons and the World Health Organization.

— The council approved a special land use permit for the establishment of a personal care home at 4372 Lawrenceville Highway by Albert’s House Five, LLC.

— The council approved a major modification to allow a compounding pharmacy to be built at 2212 Fellowship Road by Thy Pham/Atlanta City Pharmacy.

— Tucker Day will be held on May 4.

Want Decaturish delivered to your inbox every day? Sign up for our free newsletter by clicking here.

If you appreciate our work on this story, please become a paying supporter. For as little as $10 a month, you can help us keep you in the loop about your community.