Despite neighborhood resistance, new affordable apartments move ahead in North Main area

A new five-story affordable housing development in Columbia’s North Main area received another green light from the city Thursday despite neighbors being vocally resistant to the project.

Benton Crossing, a 56-unit apartment complex planned at the corner of Benton Street and River Drive near the Elmwood Park and Earlewood neighborhoods, has been controversial with neighbors, who say its design and size is out of character for the area.

They don’t oppose affordable housing in their area, but they don’t want it to be so large, they say.

“This development looks to be more appropriately placed in the Vista, or someplace where large, monolithic, parallel structures sit right on the street,” resident Clayton King told members of Columbia’s Design/Development Review Commission. “There are still issues as far as harmony” with the rest of the neighborhood.

This is the second time the Ohio-based developer Woda Cooper Companies has asked for the city’s approval of its design. In March, the design commission deferred the application until Woda Cooper amended the proposal to align with city standards.

After making those changes, Woda Cooper received approval Thursday — but not before several residents asked the commission to defer it again or reject it.

“Personally, I believe this rendering is much better than what we’ve seen prior,” River Drive resident Mary Williams said, thanking Woda Cooper for working with residents to improve the plan.

But ultimately, she said, the apartments don’t fit with the community.

“The implementation of sustainable and long-lasting housing solutions requires the integration of neighborhood support,” she said. “As an Earlewood member, as a River Drive resident, I don’t currently see that support for this project.”

Several residents said they would support affordable housing at a smaller scale.

“If you take a look at our neighborhood, it is incredibly diverse,” said Ivy Coleman, explaining that the opposition wasn’t about having more low-income residents in the area. “We are not open to this development because it is going to jam itself into our neighborhood.”

Other comments echoed concerns about the project’s height and number of units.

Project manager Parker Zee said developers considered a smaller building, but reducing the number of units would cost them the state and federal dollars they need to build the complex.

The also looked at ways to reduce it to a four-story building, but the money also requires the project have on-site parking, which, given the parcel’s size, will have to be on the project’s ground floor.

The majority of the 56 units would be for residents making 60% or less of the area median income. The company has received both a federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit as well as a state housing tax credit to fund the project.

All but one of the public comments Thursday opposed the project as its now designed.