Country club proposes commercial development on 15 acres
Mayor Vinny Mosca is inviting Harahan residents interested in the redevelopment of Colonial Golf & Country Club to a series of four meetings.
A golfer lines up a shot at Colonial Golf & Country Club in Harahan in 2009.He said he wants to hear from residents and business owners about the club's proposal for a "high end" grocery store and other commercial uses on the front 15 acres of its 88-acre property, along Jefferson Highway.
"We have a conceptual plan. We're excited about the fact that the plan will allow us to save approximately 75 percent of the green space at Colonial," said Jay Beatmann, the club's attorney. He added that the club is preparing an application to rezone a portion of the property from R-1 residential to C-1 neighborhood commercial.
He said he will attend Mosca's meetings to answer questions.
Mosca and some City Council members say they've been besieged by callers upset with the plan. Many of them are residents of Colonial Club Drive or Glenwood Avenue, the streets on either side of the club, who chafe at being so close to a large commercial development.
Councilwoman Cindy Murray said several residents voice opinions similar to her own.
"As a property owner directly affected, my property value is going to go down," said Murray, who lives on Glenwood. She favors residential development there.
Councilman Tim Baudier said the predicament of saving the green space and appeasing residents puts the council in a rough position. Neighbors close to the proposed development may be in an uproar, but Baudier said he's found that residents farther away seemed to be more in favor of the plans.
"We're really going to have to listen to what the citizens want there," he said, adding that he'd like to see the country club include some sort of buffer area between the commercial development and the neighboring properties.
Colonial is fending off foreclosure proceedings started last year by its major lender, Colonial Finance LLC. It disclosed the commercial development plans earlier this month as a way to generate revenue to pay off its debts.
Beatmann said the club has relayed concerns about the proximity to residences to a developer with it whom it is working.
"They are exploring the possibility of trying to provide an adequate buffer on each side of the development," he said. "We are trying to accommodate the concerns of the neighbors."
COLONIAL REDEVELOPMENT MEETINGS
July 7, 7 p.m.
July 8, 2 p.m.
July 9, 10 a.m.
July 11, 7 p.m.
All meetings at City Hall, 6437 Jefferson Highway