The Covington Planning Commission met this past week to discuss whether to allow a zoning change for the iconic Twelve Oaks Bed and Breakfast so that owner Nicole Greer would be able to host weddings and other functions.
Since purchasing it and spending a lot of her hard- earned money to renovate the home – which had previously shown signs of decay after a few years of vacancy – Greer has turned The Twelve Oaks into a fairy-tale place of comfort and charm for its guests.
Greer has already been hosting weddings at her establishment – the city only recently told her that wasn’t allowed – and those weddings have caused the occasional closure of Monticello Street, parking issues on side streets, and noise, leading dozens of neighbors to complain.
Greer needs to be able to host some events, in addition to running a bed and breakfast, to get a return on her investment, and her business is a boon to the local economy because it brings in outside tax dollars from tourists in our community.
On the other hand, we certainly understand area homeowners’ desire to continue to live in what in what they’ve always known as a quaint and quiet neighborhood.
We think a good thing happened at Tuesday’s meeting when Greer and her attorney agreed to meet with representatives from the neighborhood to see if a compromise could be reached that would allow Greer to continue her budding event business while mitigating the effects on neighbors.
We agree with the suggestions to limit the number of events per year and think this would solve the majority of issues. People don’t mind occasional inconvenience when it helps a neighbor, but everyone has his/her limits.
Zoning often epitomizes the idea of "not in my back yard," and we think it’s great that the citizens who are directly involved will get a chance to come to a compromise that works for them.
Ultimately, the Covington City Council will have the final say, but we hope Ms. Greer and her neighbors will be able to appear before the council with a united front so the government doesn't have to get involved.
