JACKSON -- Twice in the past few years attempts to rezone a tract of land in the Kimbeland subdivision from single-family to either commercial or multi-family use have been futile.

Jackson developer Bob Adams is the third to ask that the tract on Donna Drive be rezoned from R-1 to R-2. Adams wants to build two, eight-unit, town-house apartment buildings on the site.

As in the two earlier attempts, neighbors in the subdivision strongly oppose the rezoning, and said so during a 30-minute public hearing Monday.

The tract is near the Boatman's Bank drive-in facility and the Golden Corral Restaurant, which front on East Jackson Boulevard.

Adams said the apartments would rent for about $550 a month and would be targeted for renters seeking luxury apartments.

But residents said the area should remain R-1 to protect those who have built homes in the subdivision.

One property owner, Gary Robbins, reminded the board that Kimbeland property owners submitted a petition four years ago opposing any rezoning of the tract on Donna Drive. "Keep it as it is," urged Robbins.

Jim Johannes has lived in the subdivision longer than Robbins. Johannes said he was aware of at least five or six attempts to rezone the vacant property.

Other property owners that spoke during the hearing said the apartment buildings would drive down the value of their homes and cause excess water drainage problems.

But Adams said construction of the nearby drive-in bank and restaurant didn't adversely affect property values.

Adams said the apartment buildings would provide a buffer zone between the commercial development along East Jackson Boulevard and the south edge of the Kimbeland subdivision.

The planning and zoning commission has recommended approval of the rezoning request. That means that for the issue to fail, a two-thirds vote of the Jackson Board of Aldermen must vote against the proposal.

In other business at Monday's meeting, the aldermen approved the 1994 tax levy of $1.05 per $100 assessed valuation except for residents annexed into the city after 1965. Those residents don't pay a 13-cent city library tax levy because they are in the Riverside Regional Library District.

The 1994 levy is unchanged. It includes 65 cents for the general revenue fund, 13 cents for the library fund, 7 cents for the cemetery fund, 13 cents for the park fund, and 7 cents for the band fund. The levy is projected to raise $668,639 in tax revenues.