ASHLAND — Ashland could be getting a new neighborhood.
Ashland City Council on Tuesday approved a rezoning request that will allow a Mansfield developer to build homes on farmland at the intersection of Smith and Baney roads.
The city’s unanimous decision came despite concerns the new development could lead to an increase in traffic to the residential area and a strain to the city’s wastewater treatment plant.
Brandon Hunsinger, of Hunsinger Builders LLC, approached the city’s planning commission in August. He then addressed council and concerned residents in October and said the plan involves constructing up to 73 two-unit homes on the 58 acres of land.
Residents aired their concerns during the October hearing that lasted nearly an hour.
One resident, who lives along Smith Road and whose shallow backyard would abut with the new neighborhood, asked Hunsinger if he’d commit to building a privacy fence or other buffers along the property lines.
Hunsinger said previously he could not commit to building privacy fences or other buffers on property lines. As for traffic, Miller said the city does not have immediate plans to install a traffic signal there, and the city would not consider a traffic study to determine whether traffic flow would increase there.
Miller said in October that Smith Road is one of the city’s widest streets.
Regarding sewage, the mayor said the city owns a 10-inch water pipe along Baney Road that eventually increases to a 12-inch line.
Hunsinger was not immediately available for comment on Tuesday evening.
Hunsinger has said breaking ground on the new development could take up to two years. He added construction will be finished in phases that could take several years.
Hunsinger’s parents, Walt and Linda Hunsinger, developed Tower Lakes Luxury Condominiums in Mansfield starting in the late 1990s. Today, the condo neighborhood off of Straub Road is home to around 200 units.
Brandon Hunsinger’s plans on the land he purchased for $390,000 in January 2021 — and has leased to a farmer since then — are similar to that of Tower Lakes.
Homes there will be “median priced,” Hunsinger said previously.
