Residents press Aurora for equity in traffic calming and oppose church’s plan to tear down house for parking

Several members of the public used the council’s public‑comment period on Nov. 26 to raise two separate concerns: traffic‑calming equity and notice and neighborhood impact for a church’s conditional‑use petition.

Christina Garcia, representing Aurora Strong Towns, said the city’s traffic‑calming and Safe Routes to School grant selections have favored more affluent neighborhoods and asked for a written update on the committee’s unresolved proposals, a list of pedestrian‑refuge locations and the placement criteria used by staff. She also said meeting minutes for the Pedestrian, Bicyclists and Transportation Community Committee were missing or mislinked on the city’s website and requested that minutes be posted within 10 days to comply with the Open Meetings Act.

Separately, Dr. Glenn C. Ervin Jr., a nearby resident, spoke in opposition to Resolution 24‑0771, a petition by Gales Memorial Baptist Church seeking conditional‑use approval for a planned parking lot at 714 Gillette Ave. Ervin said his family lives about 150 feet from the property and called the proposed demolition of a home to build a concrete parking lot a poor use of housing stock. He asserted that public notice to neighboring owners was insufficient under the city’s zoning ordinance (Chapter 34, Article 5, Section 34‑502) and requested that the council return the petition to the planning commission for further review.

City staff responded during later agenda discussion that notices were sent in English and Spanish and that the request was for a conditional‑use planned development; staff also confirmed the property is owned by the church and that the council cannot prevent the owner from demolishing a house on privately owned land absent zoning restrictions.

Both public comments drew requests from council members to have staff follow up and to ensure transparency and adequate public notice for planning matters.