Fayetteville City Council appreciated the idea but said they expected more from the proposed residential development on Grady Avenue across from Fayette Middle School.

The council Oct. 19 heard the first reading of a rezoning request for the Stella Place development on 38.15 acres located at 335 Grady Ave. With a proposed change in zoning from R-30 (Single-Family Residential) to R-22 PUD (Single Family Residential), the plans call for construction of 68 homes of approximately 1,800 square feet each.

“This is the last large undeveloped land in the city and we would like it to be the creme de la creme,” Mayor Kenneth Steele said to project representative Larry Seabolt. “I understand the concept but it looks like the average subdivision. I would really like to see you attack this area with new, visionary ideas. Your homes look nice but we would like you to work in concert to make this special.”

Seabolt said he was open to ideas, adding that the concept plan could be reconfigured in ways such as altering the development’s two proposed roads and staggering the front setbacks so that all the homes would not line up in a row.

Other councilmen agreed with Steele’s perspective.

“It looks awful crowded. You may have to take out a lot or two,” said Councilman Walt White of the plans. “It looks like starter homes. We were hoping for more innovation.”

The property is located in the Main Street Overlay District. Its proximity to the downtown area will aid in creating the critical mass needed to support downtown investments, Planning and Zoning Director Eldridge Gunn said in an Oct. 6 memo. The city’s Future Land Use Plan designates the site for medium density single-family residential development, he said.

The zoning to the north of the subject site is a mixture of O-I, C-2 and R-30 uses. There is R-30 zoning directly to the east of the property. Fayette County Middle School is located across the street to the south.