The Bettendorf Planning and Zoning Commission has recommended denial of a rezoning request to permit the construction of an auto service center on the southeast corner of 53rd Avenue and 18th Street.
The rezoning from C-2 (community shopping) to C-3 (general business) was voted down by the group after hearing from nearby residents concerned about noise from such a facility and fear that the rezoning may lead to more intense use of other properties which abut residential housing.
The rezoning request was made by Dan Elias, who owns and operates three other auto service outlets in the Quad Cities, including one on State Street in Bettendorf.
The commission is only a recommending body and its decisions can be changed or overturned by the city council.
The southeast and southwest corners at 53rd and 18th Street have long stirred neighborhood concerns about commercial development. Under the initial zoning more than 20 years ago, a strip of land zoned for office/multifamily housing was between the commercial and single-family residential zoning. However, the land targeted for office/multi-family use was rezoned to allow single-family housing to be developed abutting the commercially zoned property.
Berms, tree-planting and fences have been installed in efforts to lessen the impact of the commercial developments on nearby homes.
