The first project, a five-story, 50,000-sf building will offer primarily retail and office space, and fifth-floor residential space. The company is also adding 50,000-sf to the Briggs Building, putting two more floors of office and residential on the existing two-story facility.
The projects are being constructed at the intersections of Old Woodward Avenue, Maple Road and Peabody Street. A parking deck would be added to the project for the customers, employees and residents, especially because an existing parking lot will be covered by the development. The project is going through preliminary site plan review.
The crux of the problem, said Birmingham Director of Community Development Patti McCullough, is that the developers want to put a driveway entrance on Old Woodward Avenue, which runs along the city's Downtown area. Planning officials balked at the idea of adding traffic to visitors.
"The board is trying to provide guidelines for the downtown, which is seen as pedestrian friendly," she told GlobeSt.com.
The entrance on Peabody Street would not be enough for the developer, McCullough said.
"It's a very key intersection. The city and Central Park are deciding whether there should be ingress and egress on South Woodward," she said.
The developer has told the board that the project can't exist with only one entrance on a small side street. However, McCullough said she has met with company officials, and they will be attending the March planning board meeting.
"They will be addressing some concerns relative to access, parking and the uses by pedestrians and drivers," she said.
Birmingham is a popular location for new mixed-use developments. More than $2 billion in development is now planned for the downtown area.
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