On January 20th, OTDA joined a neighborhood group of concerned citizens to participate in a Public Hearing regarding the Townsend Recovery Center operating on the campus Mercy Medical. Residents were asking the City to clarify (1) What the variance/special exemption to operate in a R-1 residential neighborhood actually permits Mercy Medical to do and (2) If Mercy Medical were to stop operating and leave the present facility, what would happen to the variance and would the property revert back to R-1. OTDA requested the City of Daphne review the process and history of special exceptions granted within residential communities.

On Feb 20th, four OTDA Board members met with Jake Bell, the new CEO of Mercy Medical to discuss our mutual interest in resolving zoning issues. Our conversation was congenial and we had a candid discussion regarding potential future tenants of the Mercy Medical administrative building. We also shared our mutual concerns about an ongoing City of Daphne drainage problem occurring between the south of the Mercy Medical property and the residents on the north side of Whiting Court. It was a good meeting and OTDA looks forward to working with Mercy Medical in the future on Olde Towne issues. At the April 20th Daphne City Council Meeting, Councilwoman Barnette requested that the City of Daphne and the Community Development Department research, unify and clarify the definitions of terms used within the community for sites that have been granted variances and special exceptions. This was brought up in reference to the AltaPointe Mental Health Facility expansion in the Park City Community. Uniform definitions will protect all property owners from inconsistencies of zoning decisions in the future.