Planning and Zoning Commission: Downtown Redevelopment Plan - A. Max Bacon City Hall - HR Training Room — Minutes
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January 20, 2026 5:30 PM City of Smyrna Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting 2800 King Street SE Council Chambers Page 5 of 6 • Balance New Housing Types to Include For-Sale Products People would like to see more balance between for-sale and for-rent housing, and would like to consider attainable housing price points. • Traffic/Parking are Concerns The scale of new development may put a stress on congestion and parking availability. Residents would like to see more traffic calming measures, while considering traffic flow. • The Jonquil Mile and new Green Space are Key Anchors The addition of the Jonquil Mile and new green spaces will make downtown more welcoming and accessible for residents and visitors. What’s Ahead for this Process As the third and final phase of work wraps up, our team will focus next on drafting a final document that reflects the community's priorities for the site. Looking Beyond this Process Following this plan's adoption, it is recommended for the City of Smyrna to find a development partner(s) to bring the community's priorities to life. This will likely include a procurement process through three likely options: • RFQ/RFP PROCESS The City issues an exploratory RFQ to narrow down the field to qualified developers, and issue a follow up RFP with more detail that asks developers to outline their vision for the site. • RFP PROCESS The City issues a single RFP to solicit proposals from developers, who must prove their qualifications and share a compelling vision for the site. • HYBRID RFP The City issues a single RFP to solicit proposals from developers with a questions period to understand market feedback. The City issues an addendum that clarifies market feedback or provides greater detail. For every option, the City outlines community priorities as determined by this public process! Establishing Community Priorities in an RFQ/P As the city looks for a development partner through a future FQ/P, what should be the City’s key priorities? • Prioritize small, local, and independent businesses – 23 votes • Provide a mix of businesses that serve families and a range of ages – 16 votes • Create a high-level of architectural quality on the street-level and public-facing facades – 23 votes • Provide a mix of residential product types and scale of units – 4 votes • Have a redevelopment that includes a mix of for-sale and for-rent residential products – 2 votes • Ensure a meaningful amount of green space that feel open and welcoming to all Smyrna Residents – 31 votes Discussion took place regarding green space and the desire for more. A question was brought forth by Commission Member Gordon-Evans as to why the current church baseball field could not remain green space rather than building it out and creating green space elsewhere. Mr. Calvo suggested that because there is a large area of green space in downtown already, the concept of smaller pockets of green space allows for more points of interest, more quality spaces, and more opportunities for green space to be enjoyed at different intervals of the development. Russell Martin, Community Development Director, also explained that the field is buildable land which allows for more opportunities to make better, more fluid designs.