STAFF REPORT
Glasgow News 1
Glasgow City Council will consider a first reading Monday night of an ordinance to rezone approximately 2.94 acres at 318 W. Washington St. The Hero Foundation has proposed 75 one-bedroom units for residents 55 and older at the site.
The proposed R-4 designation allows medium-density multifamily housing, including garden apartments, condominiums and townhouses. Barren County Fiscal Court owns the property and requested the zoning change.
The Joint City-County Planning Commission approved the zoning change in August. Several nearby property owners spoke against the proposal, known as Highland Heights, at the planning commission meeting, citing its scale, potential traffic on the narrow residential street and effects on the neighborhood’s historic character.
The present building on the property was built by Dr. C.C. Howard as his clinic. The property sits within the Southwest Glasgow Residential District, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
Residents said their primary concern was the number of units, not senior citizens or low-income housing. They said at the August planning commission meeting that they would be more supportive of a smaller development at the site or a similar project elsewhere.
Six nearby residents have filed a lawsuit questioning whether the planning commission met Kentucky’s legal requirements in recommending the change. The commission and Hero Foundation have responded that the lawsuit is premature because the city council has not voted.
The property became vacant after the Barren County Health Department moved to the renovated U.S. Bank building on South Green Street, now the Barren County Development Center.
In early September, the fiscal court canceled Wabuck Development’s lease option and approved one directly with the Hero Foundation, the Glasgow Housing Authority’s nonprofit arm. Wabuck representative April Bowman said the change would improve the project’s position in the Kentucky Housing Corporation’s competitive low-income housing tax credit process without changing Wabuck’s consultant and co-developer role.
The new option provides for a 99-year ground lease costing $600,000. The county retained Wabuck’s previously paid, nonrefundable $5,000 fee.
Key Facts:
– The first reading is scheduled for Oct. 12.
– The county-owned parcel covers approximately 2.94 acres.
– Highland Heights proposes 75 one-bedroom units for residents 55 and older.
– Six nearby residents have sued over the planning commission’s recommendation.
– The Hero Foundation’s lease option provides for a 99-year term at $600,000.
What’s Next:
Council members will consider the ordinance’s first reading. The lease option gives the Hero Foundation until March 30, 2027, to close, with an extension to Dec. 31, 2027, available for $100,000 in additional nonrefundable earnest money applied to the total cost at closing.
