Cheyanne Inc. wants 24 residential acres off Jug Factory Road rezoned light industrial for an office and a 2.58-acre materials yard. The council introduces it Tuesday; hearing Dec. 15.

A Tuscaloosa construction company wants 24 acres of vacant land beside the Sky Ranch subdivision rezoned from single-family residential to light industrial. The Tuscaloosa City Council is set to introduce the rezoning Tuesday. It would not vote on it until a public hearing on Tuesday, Dec. 15.

The land lies south of 5500 Jug Factory Road and west of Sky Ranch, in Council District 7. It is zoned SFR-2, a single-family district. The request is to change it to Industrial Light (IL), according to the Oct. 27 council agenda.

The council meets at 5 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall. The same agenda carries the second public hearing on renaming 26th Avenue East and Alberta Park for the late Council President Kip Tyner.

What the company plans

The applicant is relocating the office of Cheyanne Inc., a construction firm now based on 12th Avenue East. The plans are in the Planning and Zoning Commission packet for the commission’s Oct. 19 meeting, where the case was heard.

The company’s preliminary site plan and its Oct. 7 letter to the city show:

  • an office building of about 4,800 square feet (80 by 60 feet), in brick and metal
  • about 2,000 square feet of that as offices and 2,800 square feet as warehouse space
  • a gravel laydown yard of 2.58 acres for rebar, lumber, concrete blocks and bricks
  • parking in the yard for mini-excavators, skid steers and work trucks
  • a 50-foot industrial buffer along the side that faces the houses

The building would be about 20 feet tall at the front and 13 feet at the back, the letter says. The company said the rest of the site would not be used as storage.

What the city’s planners noted

The staff report describes the land and what surrounds it:

Side What is there
North Industrial land, zoned IL, and land outside the city limits
East Single-family homes, zoned SFR-1
South Land outside the city limits
West Land outside the city limits

The report also notes that the city’s Framework comprehensive plan maps the site as Suburban Residential. That category describes mostly single-family housing of one to three stories. The city mailed notices to property owners within 500 feet of the site.

A rezoning goes with the land

A rezoning is not tied to one company’s plans. If the council approves it, any use the IL district allows would be allowed on the 24 acres.

Uses permitted by right in IL, from the zoning code table in the staff report, include:

  • light manufacturing and artisanal production
  • warehouses and wholesale sales
  • breweries and distilleries
  • laundry and dry-cleaning plants

Heavy manufacturing, salvage yards and waste disposal are not allowed in IL, the same table shows.

Also on Tuesday’s agenda

  • Kip Tyner renaming: the second of three public hearings on renaming 26th Avenue East as Kip Tyner Parkway and Alberta Park as Kip Tyner Plaza. It is not for adoption; the final hearing is Nov. 17. Our story on the first hearing has the background.
  • Bowers Park pickleball courts: a change order with War Construction Inc. that cuts the contract by $79,432.32 and adds 39 calendar days. The city cites quantity overruns and underruns, extra work it requested and weather delays.
  • A second rezoning: about 0.2 acres at 1515 12th Ave. from IL to NC, requested by ABC Investments Inc. Its hearing is also set for Dec. 15.
  • Sewer work: a tentative $161,725 award to Suncoast Infrastructure Inc. to clean and assess the Nucor sewer line.
  • Garner Road water tank tract: a request for proposals from anyone interested in the 1-acre city property.
  • 311 Call Center: changes to the city code exhibits that cover the call center.
  • Knoll Road: a public hearing set for Nov. 17 on vacating part of the road.
  • Demolitions: hearings on ordering two buildings demolished in the 2800 block of 5th Avenue, plus two older demolition cases tabled since July and August.
  • Park board: a request for a council seat on the search committee for a new executive director of the Tuscaloosa County Park and Recreation Authority.

What it means for you

  • Live in or near Sky Ranch? Tuesday is an introduction, not a vote. The public hearing where the council can adopt the rezoning is Tuesday, Dec. 15.
  • Speak on an item: sign in with the City Clerk before the meeting. Each speaker gets five minutes, the agenda says.
  • Questions on an item: call the City Clerk’s office at (205) 248-5010 or email cityclerk@tuscaloosa.com, quoting the agenda page. The Jug Factory Road rezoning is on page 51, case Z-28-26.
  • Live in Alberta? Two chances remain to comment on the Tyner renaming: Tuesday and Tuesday, Nov. 17.

Our building permits and zoning page explains how rezonings work in Tuscaloosa, and who to call at City Hall lists every council member.