Lacombe council voted 6-1 to deny an application seeking to rezone a vacant lot within the city’s downtown from Residential Detached District (R1) to Residential Detached Narrow District (R1-N).

The lot was located at 5515 52 Avenue and the applicant had also proposed to subdivide it into two R1-N lots.

Coun. Chris Ross made the motion to deny the application.

“I don’t want to see downtown be divided into duplexes, fourplexes and the bigger lots being split. I’d like Lacombe to keep that consistency.”

A vast majority of those who attended the public hearing were against the proposal. They expressed a desire to prevent density creep into a traditionally low-density area.

This was the second straight month that council has heard an application to rezone an R1 lot within the city’s Central Residential District. A Residential Mixed (R4) application was denied in December.

Ross said something needs to be done so council is not hearing R1 redevelopment applications repeatedly.

He suggested setting ratios for how many multi-unit dwellings would be permitted, as is the case in newer areas like Henners or Elizabeth Park.

“For example, when you start into new a subdivision, there’s percentages that are meant for multi-family housing and I think we need to address the whole picture so we don’t have to re-address continued applications,” Ross said.

“These people want their larger lots to remain the same.”