Fairfield-Echo.com

A controversial zoning change to more than three acres of land on U.S. 27 will come before Oxford City Council for presumably the last time Tuesday,

May 6.

Members of the council voted to table the second reading of the zoning amendment at an April 15 meeting, pending the review of documents related to the property's original zoning.

Community Development Director Jung-Han Chen said the land was annexed into Oxford along with the rest of the Southpointe development, with the intention that it would be zoned in the same way the county has previously designated. Through a clerical error in the process, Chen said it was zoned as multifamily residential rather than general business.

"While going through the comprehensive plan and checking on acreage, we came upon this oversight," Chen said. "We went back and looked at the original annexation agreement and realized that it was not zoned correctly."

Area residents turned out in droves to voice concern over the ordinance at a pair of City Council meetings in April, many insinuating that the planned rezoning had questionable origins.

Architect Scott Webb said the contested area has been commercial for more than two decades and the rezoning simply corrects an error on the part of the city.

"It's absurd that people think something underhanded went on here," Webb said. "Everything was done before the public eye every step of the way."

Tuesday's meeting will mark the third time the council has debated the zoning change, though this time with new information under consideration.

Chen confirmed that members of the council had been provided the documents requested during their last meeting, adding that it will likely be included in the public agenda as well.

The zoning change request was previously reviewed by Oxford's Planning Commission, which voted 7-0-0 to recommend approval to the council.

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