The development of more than 30 acres along a busy corridor just off U.S. 280 is the source of a long debate among Hoover residents, developers and city leaders.

Tattersall Park, a commercial development along Highway 119, is also bustling with traffic to the local Publix market and other businesses and restaurants that line the area.

But a proposal to introduce mixed use commercial and residential development there has spurred pushback from thousands of Hoover residents.

“The whole premise is, folks want to see development down there, they just don’t want to see more things fit like a postage stamp with all this density on that little piece of land,” said Ashley Lovell, a resident of the nearby Greystone neighborhood. “We’re asking them to develop it as it is zoned.”

The proposal from EBSCO Industries and CR Endeavors to add apartments to its planned commercial development requires rezoning from the city council.

Hoover’s planning and zoning commission last week recommended the zoning change to the city council. The first reading for the proposal is expected during the Jan. 7 council meeting with a final vote on Tuesday, Jan. 21.

Lovell for months has spearheaded a grassroots campaign to deny the zoning request that would allow the apartments. Her petition garnered 2,300 signatures.

Lovell has met with the developers, who said they want to find a compromise.

“We are always seeking the best overall solution for community development, and we very much value the process,” said Jimmy Holloway, president of CR Endeavors, the company formerly known as Corporate Realty. “Listening to and working with all the stakeholders helps us do the right thing. Our team continues working on this so that we can get there.”

Lovell said residents are not against developing the property, but they are opposed to adding more residential units which would further strain infrastructure in an already saturated area.

Lovell noted that the newly built Whitby apartment complex is already across the street from Tattersall Park, within the Hoover city limits.

Lovell said a survey of residents shows overwhelming support for commercial development at Tattersall Park including a hotel, for which the property is also zoned.

“According to the survey 72 percent of the folks are saying please develop the plan as it was intended for commercial use,” she said. “Please stop trying to throw this residential component in it because it’s a higher revenue source for your business.”

Hoover City Council President John Lyda also noted the multiple stakeholders involved and various factors that must be considered including traffic, housing density and environmental concerns.

“There are three different jurisdictions right there, unincorporated Shelby County, the city of Birmingham and the city of Hoover,” he said. “So many different stakeholders have different opinions on it.”

The field under consideration has been a topic of discussion for decades.

“I hear from a lot of folks that feel the current state of Tattersall has lacked planning and so you have a hodgepodge of commercial development out there,” Lyda said. “However, how do you master plan it like the developer is trying to do today and get buy-in from the community? That’s the challenge.”