Group of Monte Sano neighbors sue City of Huntsville over development

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) - A Monte Sano development could come to a screeching halt. A group of neighbors is suing the City of Huntsville and the project’s developers, See Forever, to stop it.

See Forever developers want to build the Summit of Monte Sano new development right next to the upscale Heritage of Monte Sano community, but neighbors say it’s an unsafe move that breaks a couple of ordinances.

In March, the city council approved a controversial zoning change allowing the 64-unit subdivision to be built. Dozens of neighbors attended the meeting to stand up against it. They say their main concerns were traffic and flooding.

But, that didn’t stop the city council from unanimously approving the project just a few months later.

Now, neighbors are fighting against it. Huntsville attorney Robert Rodgers is filing a lawsuit on behalf of Heritage of Monto Sano residents Kenneth and Sherif Welch, Kelly Wells, Bertram and Katherine Morris and Neil and Ava Czajkowski.

In the lawsuit, a concern is increased flooding that could damage homes and drive down property values. They assert the development violates the city’s slope ordinance. It stops overdeveloping and crowding the land because it can lead to erosion and make the land steeper, allowing water to easily slide down the mountain into these already existing neighborhoods.

Neighbors say another issue is traffic. There is only one exit planned out of the development. It’s onto a small road, Hayleys Way, instead of connecting to the main artery of the area, Bankhead Parkway. The lawsuit asserts that this will cause a significant increase in traffic and violates road ordinances.

The City of Huntsville spokesperson said they cannot comment on ongoing litigation.

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