Landslide defeat in Galloway referendum — with nearly 20,000-vote margin

Springfield voters resoundingly rejected a proposed Galloway neighborhood development — sending a sign about what future development and growth should look like in the Queen City of the Ozarks.

Proponents of the measure, including several high-profile city leaders, argued a vote against the referendum would create a slippery slope that would slow development in Springfield to a halt. Springfield voters didn't buy that argument. In Tuesday's vote, 70.5% voted "no" to block the rezoning previously approved by City Council. According to the final tally, the margin of victory was 19,108 votes.

Galloway Village Neighborhood Association President Melanie Bach said in a statement she hopes the result will "begin a new era of better cooperation between developers, neighborhoods, and the City of Springfield, and eventually result in a better quality of place for each unique Springfield neighborhood."

"We believe that this improved cooperation WILL result in higher quality developments with wider community support," she said.

But Bach also castigated the city and community leaders for their conduct during the rezoning process and referendum campaign.

"We were extremely disappointed in those City and Community leaders who chose to place their reputations on the line in an attempt to silence the voices of everyday citizens and neighbors. They do not know better than we do what is best for our neighborhoods. We hope that our city's leadership will shift their focus toward infrastructure improvements, crime reduction, other initiatives that will increase quality of life for every Springfieldian instead of choosing to place their energies to support developments opposed by the community."

In a statement to the News-Leader, developer Mitch Jenkins gave a general statement about his "heart for Springfield."

"We would like to thank all of our supporters and people who took the time to vote today. We love Springfield and the Galloway area. We look forward to continuing our efforts to provide jobs and housing in our community," Jenkin's statement read.

More:Galloway vote has implications far beyond neighborhood as both sides worry about precedent

What was at stake in the Galloway referendum?

The approval of the referendum would have rezoned land on South Lone Pine Avenue to allow a multi-story apartment complex across from Sequiota Park. Designs for the development include a series of storefronts along Lone Pine with a four-story apartment complex of nearly 100 units behind it. The controversial project has faced years of opposition from the Galloway Village Neighborhood Association.

The developer secured approval from the Planning & Zoning Commission and the City Council several years ago, but the project was halted when a contingent of neighbors gathered several thousand signatures to force a referendum election on the issue. After a lengthy court battle, this issue was placed on the ballot for this November.

The campaign to approve rezoning was endorsed by a series of Springfield leaders and public institutions, including the Springfield-Area Chamber of Commerce, Mayor Ken McClure and educational leaders at Missouri State University and Ozarks Technical Community College.

The unified message of the "yes" campaign did not center on the development itself but the unintended consequences a "no" vote could have for future Springfield development.

"The city's building in that direction, but a 'no' vote will signal to builders and developers that we are not interested in your business, you should go elsewhere. And I just do not believe this community wants to send that message," McClure told the News-Leader about the referendum.

Citing similar concerns about future development, the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce endorsed the referendum. In an online video on the "Vote Yes Question 1" Facebook page, former Chamber of Commerce President Jim Anderson said voting down the development would "send a signal" that businesses are not welcome in Springfield.

"It's really precedent setting. And I'm really concerned that we will start attempting to rezone by referendum. And that's a very slippery slope, it seems to me because if that happens, we are going to absolutely close the door to business and development in our community."

According to the Galloway Village Neighborhood Association, the large buildings and dozens of new rental residents' traffic would "undermine the integrity" of Sequiota Park.

"We have opposed this project from the beginning due to its size and intensity and we feel it would dominate the landscape of the park. We don't want anything that's going to change our character of our neighborhood in such a fundamental way," GVNA president Melanie Bach told the News-Leader at the time.

More:Chamber donations in Galloway referendum raise questions about city's membership

Voters on Question 1

On election day, voters had very strong thoughts on the Question 1 Amendment.

Julie Steiger, a voter at Second Baptist, told the News-Leader she voted against rezoning Galloway.

“I voted no because I have seen so much of the habitat within our city being destroyed,” Steiger said.

Construction, such as with the latest Hy-Vee on Sunshine Street, has pushed wildlife out of their normal tromping paths, she said. Rezoning Galloway would mean even more habitat losses.

“I never had that before,” Steiger said. “I come home at night and there are six deer in my yard. I love them, but they’re losing their habitat.”

Brittany and Virgil Stagner, married for 11 years, voted a Democrat ballot each. The couple supported Question 1 for rezoning Galloway.

“The more apartments available could help with our stupidly high rent, have more places to live, more options,” Virgil Stagner said. “Ideally, it would lower rent for everyone.

Sara Karnes contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Landslide defeat in Galloway referendum