Council approves appeal from storage facility owner to continue expansion
Last month the Birmingham City Council passed a six-month moratorium to prevent new self-storage facilities from operating in Birmingham.
On Tuesday the Council approved an appeal from representatives with Montclair Storage LLC who had obtained the permits to expand their facility before the moratorium went into effect. The storage facility currently operates in what used to be one of the buildings associated with Montclair Baptist Medical Center that is now closed. The company is now expanding the facility on that site.
Here is the item as it appeared on the agenda:
The moratorium, which was submitted by Councilor Darrell O’Quinn, also leaves room for an additional 90-days if more time is needed to evaluate current zoning. During the public hearing portion last month, the majority of business owners and residents who spoke were in favor of the moratorium.
“We have a responsibility to make sure properties achieve their highest and best use,” O’Quinn said. “If you look at our budget and revenue, it’s impossible to miss the fact that a lot of it comes from businesses, sales tax and occupational tax. It’s hard for me to believe self-storage for this area is the highest and best use.”
According to the majority of the Councilors who spoke on the issue, the storage facility on Montclair Road does not impede on walkability or overall quality of life in the area, which is one of the stated purposes of the moratorium.
Councilor Steven Hoyt, who chaired the public hearing, said he hopes the city can amend the zoning ordinance before the moratorium expires to prevent an increase in storage facilities in Birmingham.
“I would think there are some existing storage facilities that would like to have the same opportunity to expand,” Hoyt said. “If we don’t move quick, we’re going to have all these places ask for expansion. I’m sure there are many. I don’t know if this will set a precedent but I want us to consider that as we move forward. The longer we wait to address this we’re going to have different iterations. We need to fix the language across the board in terms of our zoning ordinance.”
Due to the fact that the company had gone through the permitting process and construction was well underway before the moratorium passed, the Council approved the company’s appeal.
