SPANISH FORT, Ala. — A rezoning request for property being used by Asphalt Services in the I-10 Commerce Center has been postponed at the applicant’s request until the Nov. 9 Planning Commission meeting, allowing property owners and city officials to establish a timeline for the property’s previous use.

The original request sought to rezone property at 11059 Old Highway 31 from B-3, or General Business, to M-1, or Light Industrial, because Asphalt Services had been using the 6.5-acre parcel adjacent to its existing operation as a materials storage yard and to pulverize and recycle concrete.

The company halted concrete-crushing operations in July when the issue of a possible zoning violation was raised; it has sought to comply, but the issue has been complicated by complaints from neighboring business owners, prompting the commission to examine more closely the definitions of and permitted uses allowed in the zoning classifications involved.

J.D. Odom, representing Asphalt Services during Monday’s commission work session, said the crushing activities are a moot point and can be removed from consideration because they can be contained on the county portion of the property. The company still wishes to store equipment and materials on the remaining portion of the site, but unless it can prove the property’s prior use for that purpose had not been abandoned for more than nine months, the request may not be granted.

City engineer Martin Pitt said that if the company can document a continued previous use from the steel plant that occupied the space prior to the development of the I-10 Commerce Center there should be no problem approving the request, but the timeline provided by Odom differs substantially from that provided by Al Morgan, an immediately adjacent property owner, and Robbie Gibson, the city’s former engineer.

Odom contends the steel plant ceased operation of its laydown yard in January of 2008 and Asphalt Services assumed its operations eight months later, but Morgan and Gibson contend the previous owner abandoned its operations at least 11 months before Asphalt Services took over the property.

Gibson also contends that the existing B-3 zoning does not permit storage of sand and gravel, materials Odom said Asphalt Services considers integral to the operation.

In order to address any ambiguity, Odom agreed at Commissioner J.R. Smith’s request to provide a letter stating clearly how Asphalt Services defines use of its proposed storage yard.

Mayor Joe Bonner said it is also important for the commission to consider the uses of the non-city property surrounding the operation because any zoning decisions made at this point could affect future annexation requests.

City Attorney David Conner said it might also be prudent to take the opportunity to review and potentially expand the city’s industrial zoning classifications to accommodate future growth.

In other business the commission:

The next regular meeting of the Planning Commission will be held at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 12, following a 6 p.m. work session at the Prodisee Center.

An informal work session will be held at 6 p.m. Oct. 26 in the conference room at City Hall.