The Metro Council has voted unanimously to allow Lipscomb to adjust its proposal for campus expansions, amending the Institutional Overlay to both placate the neighborhood and at the same time allow for necessary expansions on campus.

The amended proposal — approved by the council Tuesday night at the Metro Courthouse — came out of discussions and cooperation between the university and the Avalon Neighborhood Association, the organization made up of neighbors in the surrounding community.  That group had opposed critical parts of the earlier proposal.

The new plan amends Lipscomb’s proposal presented in September 2012, a plan whose outline  gained general acceptance by Metro officials, with one major exeption. The opposition was to the university proposal to turn the campus-owned Parkwood Terrace Apartments on Belmont Boulevard into university office space. The new proposal withdraws the Parkwood Terrace plans, which pleased the surrounding neighbors, according to the university.

Lipscomb also witdhrew plans to demolish the home on 4012 Granny White Pike next to Draper’s Jewelers. The new measure allows for a parking lot to be constructed behind the home to help alleviate campus’ pressing parking issues.

The home on Granny White Pike that will not be removed

The home on Granny White Pike that will not be removed

Lipscomb plans to continue with the expansion of the McFarland Science building to the northwest corner of campus, which would involve moving a few feet into the setback. According to the university, the expansion was met favorably by the neighbors.

Lipscomb also will move forward with an increase in overall square footage currently allowed in the institutional overlay, which will aid the efforts of the newly announced 70 million/7-year plan announced last week by university President Randy Lowry. The university’s stance is that this  move will have little impact on the neighbors.

And those neighbors have agreed.

“The fact that there were no members of the public here to speak against this proposal, I think, is a testament to the hard work that Lipscomb and the neighbors have put into making sure that they’ve come to a consensus,” said Councilman Sean McGuire on the passed amendment during the meeting.

Lipscomb general council Dr. Phil Ellenburg said he was pleased with the council’s decision about the amendment.

“We’re happy that the council approved the proposal, and as Councilman McGuire stated, I think it is a testament to the fact that we worked with the neighbors,”Ellenburg said. “We’ve had a great relationship with the neighbors over the years.

“We may disagree for a while [with the neighbors], but we’ll get back together and hammer out the details, and that’s what happened here.

“We met with the neighborhood association right before Christmas and started working on a compromise, and we were able to come up with something that ultimately they all bought into.”

Ellenburg said the neighbors’ cooperation will allow for the campus to continue with its planned improvements over the next few years.

“It allows us to do things to the campus that we need to do, and we’ll go from there.”

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