HUNTINGTON òòò½ÊÓƵ” Rezoning several parcels in the West End to accommodate the cityòòò½ÊÓƵ™s proposed low-barrier shelter is on the agenda for Mondayòòò½ÊÓƵ™s Huntington City Council meeting.
The council will hear the first reading of the ordinance during its regular meeting at 7:30 p.m. The ordinance would rezone 96 3rd Ave. W., soon to be known as the Huntington Homelessness Services Hub or the Hub, and surrounding properties from I-2 Heavy Industrial District to I-1 Light Industrial District.
The request is from the City of Huntington, owner of four of the seven parcels. The city plans to redevelop the Hub in partnership with Valley Health.
A shelter/mission is not permitted in the current zoning district. The operation of a shelter/mission is conditionally permitted in an I-1 Light Industrial/Commercial District. The city will need to pursue a conditional use permit through the Board of Zoning Appeals if the zoning map is amended.
The other parcels included in the proposed rezoning are 100 3rd Ave. W. (Parcel 7-16-7), 105 2nd Ave. W. (Parcel 7-16-10), 98 3rd Ave. W. (Parcel 7-16-15) and the three unaddressed parcels to the north (Parcel 7-16-11, Parcel 7-16-116, and Parcel 7-16-116.1).
According to agenda documents, the proposed rezoning will allow for the adequate repurpose of each parcel individually. The current zoning creates a hardship to the property owners due to the lot size, the document states. The new zoning classification would complement the existing uses and zoning by allowing for the redevelopment of 96 3rd Ave. W., 98 3rd Ave. W., and the unaddressed parcels to the north (Parcel 7-16-11, Parcel 7-16-116, and Parcel 7-16-116.1), since they do not meet the minimum 20,000-square-feet lot size for heavy industrial building developments.
The rezoning to I-1 will allow for future development of commercial, mixed-use, or multi-family dwellings on each individual parcel.
The I-1 Light Industrial/Commercial District permits several residential and community uses not permitted in an I-2 Heavy Industrial District, including but not limited to group residential facility, dormitory, assisted living or congregate housing, boarding house, community center, community garden and flea market.
The I-1 District allows for less-intensity development than the I-2 District, with smaller lot sizes for residential and commercial developments.
The council will also hear the first reading of an ordinance to rezone from I-1 light industrial and commercial district and I-2 heavy industrial district 2400/2401 5th Ave. and all parcels south of 5th Avenue and north of the CSX right-of-way between 24th Street and 25th Street; all parcels bound to the east by 24th Street, to the west by the C&O Railway north-south right-of-way, to the north by 3rd Avenue and to the south by 5th Avenue.; and the northeast parcel at the intersection of 24th Street and 5th Avenue to C-2 Highway Commercial.
Earlier this month, the City Councilòòò½ÊÓƵ™s Planning and Zoning Committee gave the rezoning a favorable recommendation. Redevelopment of the parcels would include retail services that are beneficial to the city and provide goods and services for residents, students and employees, Zane Parsley, the cityòòò½ÊÓƵ™s project manager, said at the committee meeting. Parsley said redevelopment will include stormwater management and compliance with Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4). The MS4 program is a regulatory framework established by EPA, under the authority of the Clean Water Act National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), to treat these stormwater conveyance systems as a point source discharge.
Rezoning is the next step as former vacant, blighted land is being actively redeveloped, he said. Active development is going in on a parking lot.
All redevelopment is being coordinated through the West Virginia Division of Highways along 5th Avenue, as it is a state route. The undeveloped portions of the rezoning have been approved by the West Virginia DEP for commercial development, and former manufacture buildings have been removed, Parsley said.
Other business
A resolution will be considered by the council that allows the city to contribute $200,000 of the Cabell-Huntington-Wayne Home Investment Trust Fund (HOME Program) entitled funds from fiscal years 2023 and 2024 to Riverside Landing L.P. for a housing project at 3224 Riverside Drive. The project consists of a combination of two- and three-bedroom apartments, totaling 32 units across five principal buildings.
The units would be affordable for renters as itòòò½ÊÓƵ™s expected to be based on income. Total project cost is $8.6 million, Cathy Burns, executive director of Huntington Municipal Development Authority (HMDA) said during the June 9 council Planning and Zoning committee. The developer, Spire Development, is also the developer for the Imperial Lofts apartments at 2133 8th Ave. and Barnett Commons at 919 Hal Greer Blvd. Both apartment complexes are also affordable housing options in the city.
The project was approved by the Cabell Wayne Consortium and the cityòòò½ÊÓƵ™s planning commission on May 28. The project needed approval due to its size, which was over an acre of whatòòò½ÊÓƵ™s recommended.
The council will also hear the first reading of an ordinance that will allow Mayor Patrick Farrell to enter into an intergovernmental agreement between the city and Cabell County for the Edward J. Byrne Memorial Justice òòò½ÊÓƵsistance Grant (JAG) program award. The ordinance allows Huntington Police Department (HPD) and Cabell County Sheriffòòò½ÊÓƵ™s Office to split the award of $53,275.
HPD will receive two-thirds of the grant and Cabell County Sheriffòòò½ÊÓƵ™s Office will receive one-third.
The council will also consider a resolution for HPD to accept the JAG award grant money of $35,516.66 because of its split with the county. Although the grant award is from FY24 it was not issued until December 2024 and formally acknowledged in February 2025, HPD Police Chief Phil Watkins said earlier this month in a city council Public Safety Committee.
The council will also consider a resolution confirming the appointment of Anne Dandelet to a second term of the Huntington Municipal Parking Board.
