Desmond Bell is wasting no time in rehabilitating a once-thriving African American community between Kenton Street and Greenwood Alley in Bowling Green.
Now that the 1.3686-acre parcel has been approved for a rezoning by the Bowling Green City Commission, Bell is moving forward with his plan to transform the property that had fallen into disrepair and was nearly turned into a business district last year.
Bellâs Bell Vue Properties LLC was successful in getting the property rezoned from two-family residential and general business to planned unit development. Now his plan to develop the property into a 22-unit residential area that includes apartments and houses is taking shape.
In a pandemic environment not friendly to commercial tenants, the SoDo (for South Downtown) development centered on the 1010 State St. property is tilting more toward residential than originally planned.
Kyle Shirley, the principal of the TinTin Properties LLC that has been working since 2017 to develop the block bordered by East 10th and East 11th avenues, won approval Dec. 17 for a rezoning that will allow for that emphasis on apartments.
The City-County Planning Commission of Warren County, meeting via Zoom teleconference, approved in an 11-0 vote the application from TinTin Properties to rezone the 1.09-acre property from central business to planned unit development in order to use more than 50 percent of the first floor of the existing structures for residential.
The Bowling Green City Commission met via teleconference Tuesday and approved the issuance of $46.5 million in bonds for the Kentucky Transpark in the final meeting for Mayor Bruce Wilkerson and Commissioners Joe Denning and Brian âSlimâ Nash.
Wilkerson dropped his reelection bid in September, citing health concerns. Nash and Denning lost in their reelection campaigns.
The commission unanimously approved on a final reading issuing two bonds for a combined $46.5 million to be used for building infrastructure for an expansion of the transpark. The Inter-Modal Transportation Authority recently purchased nearly 300 acres for an expansion of the industrial park, which opened in 1998 and is near capacity.
A plan to realign Highland Way and connect it to the Emmett Avenue traffic light on Nashville Road will do more than improve traffic flow.
Passed by the Bowling Green City Commission on Dec. 1, a municipal order to work with property owner Sam Potter Jr. to build a new stretch of road will ultimately tie in with a commercial/residential development planned for Potterâs property and with plans to widen Nashville Road.
The municipal order calls for the city to spend up to $100,000 and for Potter to donate the land needed near his 603 Highland Way property to build a stub road of about 300 feet in whatâs called the first phase of the Highland Way realignment.