The Athens City Council approved rezoning 23.5 acres of property from a general business district to a multifamily district to accommodate an apartment complex, despite numerous objections from residents of nearby subdivisions.

The council’s 3-1 vote Monday evening to rezone and approve the 456-unit apartment complex’s master plan followed a public hearing that lasted approximately one hour. Nine people spoke in opposition of the development, with many of their comments leading to applause from the audience.

District 4 Councilmen Joseph Cannon, District 5 Councilman Wayne Harper and District 3 Councilman Frank Travis voted yes. Council President Harold Wales, who represents District 2, where the apartment complex will be located, voted no.

District 1 Councilman Chris Seibert was absent.

The location of the development is south of U.S. 72, west of Lindsay Lane and north of Whitfield Drive, near the Canebrake, Indian Trace, Whitfield Colony and Diamond Point neighborhoods. The property will be purchased and developed by J&J Development, a Texas-based company.

Monday’s vote was the second time the development had come before the council. A previous public hearing on Aug. 27 turned heated as people spoke out against the development.

The council decided against voting on the project after the public hearing, and the development company withdrew the application in order to make changes. Those changes are what sold the majority of the council on approving the project, Harper said.

“When you folks came up here (before) and let us know your concerns, I had planned to vote no,” Harper said. “But I look at the revisions and changes that have been made, and I feel the development company has gone over and above to satisfy the residents of the neighborhoods. I feel these will be nice apartments and for that reason, I will support this tonight.”

Taz Morell, of Morell Engineering of Athens, addressed the changes made to the development at the beginning of the hearing. Those included changes in traffic flow; additional buffer zones between the development and neighborhoods, which include a 5-acre park, two dog parks and a walking trail; and an 8-foot-tall concrete wall separating the development from neighboring subdivisions.

There will also be a 100-foot separation from the closest development building to Whitfield Colony’s property line, with the apartment buildings in that area being two stories tall. The three-story buildings will be more than 150 feet away from the property line.

That change was made to alleviate concerns people in a third-story apartment building would be able to see into the backyards of residents living in Whitfield Colony.

Morell also stressed that if J&J Development ever sold the property before finishing construction, a new developer would have to go by the master plan or come back before the City Council and go through the voting process all over again.

But those changes weren’t enough for the residents who filled the City Hall boardroom. Many expressed concern over changes in property values or the quality of life for citizens in neighboring subdivisions.

Despite the apartments being described as high-end, luxury apartments, citizens were wary of what the developer would do if the economy soured and apartments weren’t being rented.

“This development company is coming in to make money,” Whitfield Drive resident Allen Creasy said. “What happens if their investment is not making the profit they need to make? Is there a limit on the rent that can be charged for those apartments? Or can they come in and get subsidized by the government to pay the remainder of that rent?”

Creasy said he worried the area would become like Elm Street and Clinton Street in Athens, where he said apartments have negatively affected the quality of life.

“I don’t want Lindsay Lane to become Elm Street,” Creasy said. “When they built the apartments on Elm Street, they weren’t expecting it to become what it has become. Clinton Street as well. What assurances do we have that this project isn’t the first step to becoming Elm Street East?”

Whitfield Drive resident Jon Coulter said apartment complexes depreciate from the first day they are opened and drag the area surrounding down with them.

“That is exactly what I am afraid what is going to happen here,” Coulter said. “I don’t think there’s one of you who could look me in the eye and say you would want this type of development in your backyard, and we don’t want it in our backyard.”

No one spoke in favor of the development, but Cannon implied he was voting yes to benefit the entire city of Athens instead of just the people who live next to the development. He asked anyone who lives outside of District 2 and was at the meeting to raise their hand if they opposed the project.

When no one raised their hands, Cannon replied, “Thank you.”

Travis said he also polled residents in his district and found no one in opposition.

Wales said he and the council would make sure the developers kept their promises and the apartment complex would remain high-end.

“I wish everybody could go home happy, but I promise you tonight, I’ll stay on top of this until I leave office,” Wales told the audience following the vote. “I can’t tell you the amount of hard work that has gone into this. We are not going to let you down, I promise you that.”