0213 Moon Glow Belcher Hoover Planning
Jonathan Belcher, left, president of Signature Homes, addresses the Hoover Planning Commission on Feb. 11. about his company's proposed development around Moon Glow Lake. Pictured are Commission members Sammy Harris and Scott Underwood.
The battle to prevent development around Moon Glow Lake concluded Monday, March 18 in a public hearing where no one spoke.
Thanks to collaborative efforts between developer Signature Homes and homeowner associations from surrounding neighborhoods, the brief hearing held during the Hoover City Council’s regular meeting ended months of disagreement on the proposed development. Credit for the resolve went to collaboration between the developer and surrounding residents.
Signature Homes President Jonathan Belcher said his company finalized formal agreements with Inverness Master, Woodford and The Sanctuary at Caldwell Crossings homeowners associations the morning of the hearing. These agreements were presented to the council along with a letter from Signature Homes affirming its runoff prevention commitments to residents of Indian Valley Lake.
“My hats off to these communities for working together,” Councilman Adm. Jack Natter said, “and to Mr. Belcher and Mr. (Dwight) Sandlin for getting this to pass.”
The agreements establish strict guidelines for construction hours, home sizes, neighborhood access points, buffer zones and more.
“It is tough for anybody, myself included,” Belcher said after the meeting. “If a developer comes in and wants to change our surroundings, it’s hard not to think of anyone but ourselves.
“What I appreciate the most is that while took several months and we had a lot of tough discussions, the adjoining neighborhoods were very gracious in offering fair requests to accommodate what they deem to be most important to their communities to allow us to come to an agreement for the rezoning.”
The council approved Signature Homes' request to rezone the property, which is located just north of Berry Middle School off Caldwell Mill Road, from agricultural to planned residential development. This will allow the company to build 109 homes on approximately 66 acres of the current woodland surrounding Moon Glow Lake.
Belcher said the next step is to get approval on the first phase of engineering. He anticipated work would begin by the beginning of summer.
