Zoning Commission Rebukes New Proposal for Northport’s University Beach Lagoon Resort

The Northport community and fascinated onlookers around the region got their longest look to date at updated plans for University Beach - the notorious $350 million lagoon resort the city council rushed to approve last year - during a Tuesday night meeting.

The matter was before the city's Planning & Zoning Commission, who heard a pitch from developer Kent Donahue to rezone the 76+ acres on McFarland Boulevard where the unprecedented project is planned.

Donahue and his development partners want to see the land rezoned from Highway Commercial, or C-6, into what is known as a Special District - where the resort's developers would have near free reign to develop as many as 90 residential and commercial buildings on the property without having to seek new approvals from the city each time.

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Donahue's first presentation to the Commission was less about walking through the changes from the regular requirements of the subdivision regulations and zoning ordinance he was hoping to have allowed and more about introducing them to a new, two-phase vision for University Beach.

Backed by 3D video you can check out at universitybeach.com, Donahue outlined some of the features planned for the resort - the 10-acre lagoon with white sand beaches, a 10,000-square foot Beach Club, a full water park featuring a lazy river and slide tower and much, much more.

Donahue teased a concert venue to hold up to 2,000 people and a 150-key hotel with 30,000 square feet of convention space.

He also said for the first time that the project has been split into two Phases while the developers contend with concerns about impacts on protected wetlands from the Army Corps of Engineers, the Tuscaloosa County Commission and more.

Donahue said Phase 1 will allow developers to build out a regional attraction and prove the concept can work, draw visitors and generate revenue.

"The Beach, the Lagoon, everything that creates the amenity is going to be outside those wetlands," Donahue said.

Phase 2, amateurishly highlighted by the Thread below, would add a lot more housing to the resort, although Donahue said developers do not know if they want to build three-story single-family homes there or a major multi-family housing development with hundreds of rooms.

"The applicant has expressed the intent of deciding which option to pursue at a later date depending on market conditions," Northport city staff wrote. "[The developer] proposes a maximum of 470 residential units, with a minimum of 50 being single-family detached houses. This would allow the applicant to build up to 420 multifamily residential units. For reference, the development closest in size and scale to this would be the 300+ unit development in Tuscaloosa known as The Lofts."

He also talked about the potential of a second hotel in Phase 2.

The Planning & Zoning Commission does not make decisions for the city, they pass on recommendations to the five-member Northport City Council for a later vote.

"The Commission can make a recommendation for approval, approval with changes, or denial to the Council; or, with consent of the applicant, table its recommendation to allow time for further review or for the applicant to make requested changes," city staff explained.

Many Northport political figures spoke during the public hearing, urging the Commission to punt on this decision - former councilmen Bart Harper and Lee Boozer, former homicide investigator and political candidate Dale Phillips, Danny Higdon, Tuffy Holland and many others took to the podium and said the Commission should table their Tuesday vote and take more time to dig into concerns about the project.

The problem, though, is that tabling a zoning request requires the consent of the applicant. Commissioner David Kemp asked if Donahue would allow the matter to be tabled and picked up again later, and said the developer said he wasn't interested in that.

"I'm happy to answer any question you have tonight and would be willing to accept [a favorable recommendation] with some compromises, but the unfortunate part about that is we're in tune with all the social media and all the stuff going on," Donahue said. "Tabling is just not going to get us to a point, unfortunately - folks who just don't want it, don't want it. I get it, I understand it, and I think at the end of the day they're going to be really proud of what we do but we need to move forward with the project."

The Commission voted 3-3 to recommend the rezoning when the council votes on the matter in May, but because it was a split vote, it will go to the five council members without a favorable recommendation.

Roland Lewis, Clay Randolph and Northport City Councilman Karl Wiggins, who is also a member of the Commission, voted for a favorable recommendation. Brian Chandler, Kevin Turner and David Kemp voted against it.

Julie Ramm, Northport's Director of Planning and Inspections, said she expected a first-reading of the rezoning on May 5th and a second reading, public hearing and vote on May 19th.

This story will be updated.