New Lane Parke plan unveiled

Evson Inc. has presented a new, scaled back plan for the 27-acre Lane Parke development to the city. The plan has reduced retail and commercial space by 22 percent from the most recent plan and added a plan for residential area on the north end of the property.

“We have shown the plan to a number of parties that had concerns in the past, and they think it’s a much more appropriate plan for the site,” said John Evans, principal at Evson, which owns the property. “We want everyone to embrace this project because it is at the center of the community.”

The city’s planning commission is set to hear a presentation on the plan on March 5 at 5:30 p.m. at Mountain Brook Junior High School. All parties involved in the planning, including Evson; Goodwyn, Mills & Cawood; Walker Parking; Skipper Consulting; Historical Concepts; and Daniel Corporation, will present. The developers encourage interested citizens to come to the presentation.

This is the third plan for the space currently occupied by Mountain Brook Shopping Center and Park Lane apartments to come before the City Council. Evson announced in August 2011 that they were partnering with Daniel Corporation as they created a smaller plan.

“Most of the issues raised with the previous plans have now been addressed,” said Steve Bradley, spokesperson for the developer. “We believe people are very familiar with the plans now and are ready to see them happen. It is our intent to move forward as quickly as possible.”

“We are optimistic we will get approval and start construction later this year,” Evans said.

The north half of the property where the Park Lane apartments currently are, was not a part of the initial development; now 276 apartments will be built with the initial phase.

The new development will have the same number of units as the existing apartments, but the new, larger units will be housed in three to four story buildings with generous green space. None of these buildings will be visible from the other parts of the village. Unlike the previous plan, there will be no residential space over retail space. Only commercial space will be housed on the second floor of retail buildings.

Also as a part of scaling back the plan, there will be one parking structure instead of three, and it will be within the interior of the development. The plan calls for 1,201 parking spaces. Based on a parking survey by Walker Parking, that should provide 150 surplus spaces on a typical day and 60 surplus spaces during the most busy times of the year, like a Saturday evening in December.

The vision for the development remains to be an extension of historic Mountain Brook Village.

“The goal is for Lane Parke to feel like it was developed over a long period of time,” said Jeffrey Brewer, senior vice president of Goodwyn, Mills & Cawood. “The architecture should be a varied collection of small buildings and styles reminiscent of the existing village. “

The pattern book for all but the residential areas remains the same as the previous plans.

A new Jemison Lane will connect what is now Regions Bank with Lane Park Road, and a new Main Street (name is pending) will run north and south to allow pedestrian and vehicular access to all parts of the Village.

The Henry Ray building, which currently houses Ray & Poynor Properties, will remain standing but will be renovated.

All retail and office space will be located closest to the existing Village and will be one or two stories high. To the North, the residential space will be three to four stories high.

According to Brewer, the four-story inn in the plan could be built in a later phase. Regardless, the inn will now be located across the street from the Birmingham Botanical Gardens on Lane Park Road, set back with a green space in front. It will be roughly the same size as the previous plan.

There will be no added traffic signals, only added internal stop signs.

“It’s all a reflection of the reduced size and scale of the plan,” Bradley said.

Traffic in Mountain Brook Village would also be alleviated with the plan, according to the developers. Designated turn lanes would be added to both Culver Road and Lane Park Road, and a left turn signal would be added for those driving into the Village from the Highway 280 off ramp.

As a part of the city’s Flood Mitigation Project, the culvert running behind the existing Mountain Brook Shopping Center will be increased in size to rechannel waters from the zoo area downstream. Currently, they tend to flow into the shopping center parking lot.

“We used the city’s master plan as a guide,” Brewer said. “Many of the components (of the new plan) come from the recommendations of the master plan.” For instance, the master plan calls for a street running north to south to create a pedestrian connection from residential to retail space.

The master plan also called for an extension of Jemison Trail into Mountain Brook Village. Under the new Lane Parke plan, Jemison Trail will connect to the Woodland Park located on the northeast end of the development. The park will be an extension of Jemison with walking paths.

There will also be a Village Green civic lawn space adjacent to the retail space.

“When the project is finished, people will be able to park and stroll around the village in a much more pedestrian friendly manner,” Bradley said.

The northern half of the development would be built during the first phase. During this time, existing Mountain Brook Shopping Center retailers could remain in business. Then, when phase two starts, those businesses, including the grocery store, could move to the new buildings, never having to close business for an extended period of time.

Both phases are to be completed in three to four years.

Following the March 5 presentation, the Lane Parke plans will have to be passed by both the Planning Commission and City Council. Bradley said they hope for all current tenants to move to the new space.

“We will not start construction until we have adequate preleasing in order to go to a lending institution or institutions,” Evans said. “There are a lot of different financial institutions interested in the project.”

For more information on Lane Parke plans, visit laneparke.info.