Medical and retail buildings proposed at Duplex & Port Royal

A new three-story, 40,446 square-foot medical facility is being proposed at the corner of Port Royal and Duplex Roads.

The proposal also includes two additional one-story 8,500 square-foot retail buildings and would encompass approximately 6.13 acres.

The applicant T Square Engineering presented the request to the Spring Hill Planning Commission this week, where it was given a thorough review. The property is currently zoned C-3 for commercial, which would allow the medial and retail use. However, the property would be required to undergo a traffic impact study and water/sewer capacity test before approval, according to a Spring Hill planning staff report.

Some of the issues from planners were in regard to the site's access, which includes a curb cut on Port Royal and an existing stub off Kent Lane.

"With the parking lot itself, to me it just feels a little awkward," Planning Commission Vice Chair James Golias said. "It's a challenging site with the frontage onto both roads, with whatever the architectural elements may be, though I know we aren't there yet."

Mayor Jim Hagaman said having a connection to Kent Lane would likely be in violation of the city's Unified Development Code, primarily to "promote safety and welfare."

"If you bring traffic onto Kent Lane, this safety is directly compromised and is in conflict of that," Hagaman said. "This does not preserve the quality of life, but actually degrades quality of life."

There were also concerns about the 173 proposed parking spots, which consist of multiple variants.

"Conceptually, with this site, it just doesn't fit. I know we are trying to hit numbers, but with the way it's laid out, I just don't see much utility in the parking," Alderman Trent Linville said.

The proposal also drew comments from several concerned citizens, particularly having it located next to the nearby residential homes. The citizens also shared planners' concerns about access onto Kent Lane.

"The Wynngate folks have let it be known that they are opposed to this," David Huebner, a nearby resident said. "Kent Lane is a narrow street and is already difficult to navigate."

Battle Creek High School special called meeting Thursday

The planning commission concluded its Monday meeting by discussing a proposed high school, which will go under review later this week.

The proposed 300,000 square-foot Battle Creek High School will be the subject of a special called meeting scheduled to take place at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at Spring Hill City Hall. The intent of the meeting is to expedite construction, with the goal to have the school operational by the fall of 2024.

"If you follow politics in terms of funding a $100 million high school, it's been difficult to say the least," Joe Haddix, representing the applicant CSDG, said. "We're going to be working with engineers to get our permit for grading and utilities, because we are tapping into public infrastructure."