A rezoning matter that split both the Poplar Bluff City Council and planning and zoning commission faces a deciding vote Monday, after being rescheduled twice.
Members of the Barbour family have asked that approximately 1.75 acres of property between Barron Road and Katy Lane be rezoned from residential to office professional.
The family told city boards in June this would offer a good transition between commercial property and homeowners.
Residents who oppose the change said it will encroach on a family neighborhood and fear it could mean the end of a quiet street.
The matter was discussed by the city council June 19 and expected to be a voting matter at the July 3 meeting, which was cancelled.
It was moved forward for a vote at a special meeting June 23 to review the city audit, but then postponed until a later date.
Mayor Ed DeGaris initially voted against moving the matter from planning and zoning to the city council, saying he was concerned about protecting residential neighborhoods.
Ward 4 council member Philip Crocker and Barbara Horton of Ward 3 voted later against moving the matter to the city council's action agenda.
The family presented the council with a compromise, developed with the help of city officials, that would make the Katy Lane side of the property office professional while leaving the Barron Road side of the property residential.
This was a good option, according to Mayor pro tem Susan McVey, who voted in favor of moving the matter to the council's voting session.
Crocker said the Barron Road side needed to include a larger lot, in order to build a house comparable to those already in the neighborhood.
Residents said a house adjoining the lot in question is already used as an office by the owner. They expressed concern that more requests for rezoning would follow if this is approved, a concern Horton said she shared.
Dr. Dan Barbour represented the owners, telling council members this has been in his family for many generations and provided free green space for the neighborhood for about 70 years.
The family wants to be good neighbors, he said, and this offers a soft transition between commercial and residential.