It appears everything on New Garden Road has already been or is in the process of being rezoned.
But 1302 New Garden Road will remain single family residential (R-3) like the rest of the Robinridge neighborhood, following the Zoning Commission meeting on Monday, July 15 in the City Council Chamber.
The Zoning Commission wasn’t impressed with the lack of details in the rezoning request from the property owner Kim Reittinger.
Zoning Commissioner Zac Engle said he wouldn’t say the property which is on the northwest corner of the Robinridge neighborhood, should never be rezoned, but he wasn’t convinced that Conditional District – Office (CD-O) with two conditions was the right way to go. He said, “Right now, to me this should stay R-3.”
The conditions were no hotels, motels or group homes and no buildings over 40 feet in height.
About 50 people from the neighborhood opposed to the rezoning attended the meeting. Several of the opposition speakers noted that there were over 60 uses that would be legal if the property were rezoned. They asked that their neighborhood be protected and several noted that the 2025 Comprehensive Plan recommended protecting established neighborhoods from commercial encroachment.
Reittinger said her plan was to get the property rezoned first and then decide what to do with it.
Zoning Commissioner Hugh Holston asked about holding a neighborhood meeting. Reittinger said that instead she decided to go door to door in the neighborhood. She said that she talked to a number of neighbors and they told her, ‘We’re good with it.” This brought a lot of loud laughter from the audience.
Reittinger said the house is currently a rental.
Neighbors speaking in opposition noted that a lot of people lived there. Several photos taken both by city staff and the neighbors showed five or six vehicles in the front yard, something those in opposition clearly didn’t like.
A New Garden Road Strategic Plan was recently completed, but has not been approved or accepted by the City Council. Before the item was heard, Zoning Commissioner Andrew Pinto suggested because the strategic plan would likely be approved soon, that the rezoning request be delayed for a month, but he didn’t get any support from his fellow commissioners.
The city planning department recommended in favor of the rezoning, but the Zoning Commission voted 7-1 against it with Zoning Commissioner Vernal Alford casting the lone vote in favor of the rezoning.
The decision by the Zoning Commission can be appealed to the Greensboro City Council.
