A property owner is asking city officials to rezone a vacant, 2.26-acre site in northeast Ocala from single-family to multi-family housing.
A second and final reading of the rezoning request will take place during the Ocala City Council’s regular meeting on Tuesday, March 3. The 2.26-acre, undeveloped site is located in the 1400 block of NE 14th Street.
The applicants, Arun and Anjana Singh, are seeking to transition the land from its current split-zoning of Residential Office (RO) and Single Family Residential (R-1) to Multi-Family Residential (R-3).
While the current districts limit building heights to 35 feet, the proposed R-3 designation would allow for single-family, two-family, and multi-family dwellings with a maximum height of up to 50 feet.
City staff noted that the R-3 district includes specific development standards for setbacks and buffering intended to ensure the project remains compatible with the surrounding neighborhood.
The request follows a historical pattern of development along the NE 14th Street corridor, which features a mix of institutional, commercial, and residential uses.
The site is bordered on three sides by institutional uses, including the Marion Baptist Association and an Islamic church, which provides a buffer between the arterial roadway and lower-density residential areas to the south.
The requested R-3 district aligns with the existing low intensity future land use designation, which allows for a maximum of 18 dwelling units per acre.
A preliminary analysis of public facilities indicated no current capacity issues for city utilities at this location. Furthermore, other properties north of NE 14th Street already feature R-3 zoning, which staff says demonstrates the area’s capacity for higher-density residential growth.
The Ocala Planning and Zoning Commission previously recommended approval of the request during its meeting on Jan. 12.
The Ocala City Council next meets on Tuesday, March 3, at 4 p.m. at Ocala City Hall (110 SE Watula Avenue).