Special Use Permit application of the Druid Hills preschool

 

Last week approximately 250 people turned out for our monthly meeting. Most were there to consider the Special Use Permit application of the Druid Hills preschool, proposing to move into St. Joseph's Church at the corner of Seminole and Sinclair. The previous week, the immediate neighbors voted 44-7 to oppose the application. At the IPNA meeting, the Preschool presented its proposal to the full neighborhood and the immediate neighbors presented their concerns, which focused on traffic. After more than one hour of question-and-answer, discussion, and advocacy, the neighborhood voted, 110-82, to support the immediate neighbors and to oppose the preschool's application. The neighborhood's vote is not legally binding; it is a recommendation to the City.

The next step in the process is for the applicant to present its application to the Neighborhood Planning Unit. The NPU will consider the application at its next meeting. The meeting is open to the public and anyone interested in the issue should plan to attend, though you should also know that the discussion and opportunity for public input is much more limited than the opportunity afforded at our monthly meeting. As with the decision at the IPNA meeting, the decision of the NPU is a non-binding recommmendation to the City. Rick Bizot, our Inman Park Representative to the NPU, has prepared a description of the procedures that the NPU follows:

The February 2017 meeting of NPU-N will be held on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2017 at the Little Five Points Center for Arts and Community (1083 Austin Ave; meeting room closest to Euclid Ave, where voting occurs). The meeting begins at 7pm.
The procedures for each application are as follows:

There shall be 10 minutes, or other time allotment as adopted by the Executive Committee at the beginning of each NPU-N Meeting, for each of the following:

a) for applicant to present application. Unused time may be reserved for rebuttal.
b) for neighborhood input/questions regarding application [in support and in opposition].
c) for Executive Board to ask questions of applicant.
d) unused time from "a" above, if any, may be used for rebuttal by the Applicant.
e) Comments and discussion, if any, from the NPU-N Executive Board.

The NPU-N Executive Board consists of one representative from each of these neighborhoods/groups: Inman Park, Candler Park, Lake Claire, Reynoldstown, Cabbagetown, Poncey-Highland, Druid Hills, Little 5 Points Business Association and Little 5 Points Center for Arts and Community. At least 5 members need to be present to form a quorum. The NPU-N Chair does not vote, except in the case of a tie vote.

Neil Kinkopf

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Comments on "Special Use Permit application of the Druid Hills preschool"

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Mary Buehl Saghafi - Tuesday, February 21, 2017
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I just wanted to thank Neil for doing such a great job presiding over the meeting. Your tone and consideration for all parties was very much appreciated. Thank you for reminding us that we are all neighbors and these contentious moments are just a spot in time after which we all will continue to be neighbors.

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