UPDATE:

--

The owners of H2 Real Estate are planning to develop a luxury townhouse development in Birmingham's Highland Park.

The six-unit development proposed for the corner of Rhodes Circle and 30th Street South "will complement the existing historic character of the neighborhood," said H2 Real Estate co-owner Carter Hughes.

Each townhouse will be approximately 2,220 square feet with three bedrooms and three bathrooms, and each townhouse will have a private, two-car garage.

Carter estimated the townhouses will list in the $500,000s.

The developer is seeking a variance from the Birmingham Zoning Board of Adjustment to allow for a 15-foot front yard setback along 30th Street South instead of a 25-foot setback as required by current zoning.

According to the Birmingham Planning, Engineering and Permits Department, the developer's proposed townhouse development will resemble current multiple family dwellings in Highland Park. Because existing structures along 30th Street South vary in setback, the developer requires the variance. A 15-foot setback would be in character with the existing structures and no closer to the street than other structures along Rhodes Circle, according to the department.

The Birmingham Zoning Board of Adjustment meets at 2 p.m. on Thursday, July 13 in the City Council Chambers on the third floor of City Hall at 710 20th Street North.

The Highland Park Neighborhood Association gave its approval to the variance.

"It looks quite nice," neighborhood association President Alison Glascock said, of the proposed development. "I would prefer it myself that nothing went in there, but that isn't realistic nowadays. I think it is going to be a quality product."

The Birmingham Planning, Engineering and Permits Department, though, has received about two dozen emails and several calls in opposition to the variance request.

Hughes said Highland Park is one of his favorite neighborhoods in Birmingham, and he and his business partner Scott Hughes's family formerly lived there.

"We are all drawn to the historic character of this community," he said. "From the architecture, to the neighborhood vibe, pedestrian accessibility through sidewalks and parks, Highland Park provides a unique character to our city that we have embraced in our personal lives and also wanted to do so in our professional lives."

Not all homeowners want to live in the 100-year-old homes in the neighborhood, though, Hughes said. That's why H2 Real Estate decided to develop this small townhouse community, which is within walking distance to Rojo, O'Henry's Coffee and Rushton Park, to "provide a new construction property that matched the character of the neighborhood," he said.

The development was designed by Nequette Architecture & Design.

H2 Real Estate developed the Gladstone Townhomes, a 60-unit townhome development in Crestline Park, which is under construction; Silverock Cove and The Hawk's Nest at Smith Lake, both high-end second-home communities. The company was also involved in the construction of Abbey Road Townhomes and the Cottages of Abbey Road in Birmingham.