The vote for the Residential Senior Living (RSL) district was deadlocked at 3-3 before Mayor Matt Santini pitched his deciding vote in favor of the ordinance.

“A lot of planning and discussion has gone into this,” said Council member Dianne Tate during the meeting.

Members of council were not opposed to the new district, but wanted the ordinace to be “consistent” with other residential districts, Ms. Tate said.

A point of contention of the ordiance was its wording regarding parking.

Jeff Watkins, who helped draft the ordinance, proposed allowing the driveway of the units within the development to count as parking, rather than have developers contend with the city’s current standards for parking spaces on residential properties.

“I don’t think that that should be required,” Watkins said. “I believe that’s unreasonable.”

The Dec. 4 decision by council allows developers within RSL districts to count paved driveways as parking for its units.

“I don’t want to deter any developer,” Council member Jayce Stepp said.

The RSL district will allow for the construction of 1,000 square-foot homes, give City Council and staff flexibility regarding construction and variance issues, exempt developers from some of the usual stan-dards that apply to new developments and allow more density. Residents would be restricted to those ages 55 and older.

Now that council has approved the new district, plans to move forward with the first development under the new ordiance are moving forward following a unanimous vote to approve a rezoning application by Avalon Lake Properties.

Avalon Lake, which is the site of a former Christmas tree farm, is about 32 acres located on Mission Road.

The property was originally rezoned to R-10 back in 2006, which would have allowed for a conservative subdivision, but Watkins said the property has since been re-evaluated and the highest and best use of the property would now be a senior living development.

In addition to the one-bedroom homes that would be built on the lot, proposed amenities include a swimming pool, lake and a walking trail.

Other items from the meeting include:

? Approval of three amendments to the alcohol ordiance in regards to Sunday sales and allowing alcohol licenses to nonprofit museums.

? Approval of an amendment to the code of ordiances that would replace all references of “community development” with “planning and development” throughout the city’s municipal code.