Downtown is about to get taller.

After three weeks of wrangling, Lawrence city commissioners on Tuesday approved a 72-foot-tall building for the 800 block of New Hampshire Street that will contain condominiums, office and retail space.

“I think it’s a tremendous asset for us,” Mayor David Dunfield said of the project. “We’ve been able to capitalize on an opportunity that arose.”

Some East Lawrence neighborhood residents remained opposed to the sheer height of the project.

“In terms of scale, it is too tall,” said K.T. Walsh, who lives near the development site. “It is still too tall.”

But developer Bo Harris said there was no way to make the project economically viable if it was shorter.

“If I could have changed it, I would have,” he said. “I would have saved myself countless hours of trouble.”

Harris’ plans call for a 100,000-square-foot building that would include 32 loft-style condominiums, retail stores, offices and a 52-space underground parking garage at the northeast corner of Eighth and New Hampshire streets.

The proposed building would be as much as 72 feet — the original plan of 78 feet was reduced in the face of the neighborhood objections about height — and five stories tall, higher than zoning code limits of 45 feet and four stories. By comparison, the Eldridge Hotel at Seventh and Massachusetts streets is 63 feet tall, while the US Bank building at Ninth and Massachusetts streets is 77 feet tall.

Before they could give approval to the project, commissioners must overrule a finding by the city’s Historic Resources Commission that the project would “encroach upon, damage or destroy” the environs of two nearby historic buildings — the Eldridge Hotel and the News Center, 645 N.H., both of which are on the National Register of Historic Places.

The News Center is home to the Journal-World and 6News reporting staffs.

¢ 6News video: Some city workers to recieve raises¢ Project creeps toward approval (7-9-03)¢ 6News video: City seeks more data on condo project¢ 78-foot structure gets go-ahead (7-3-03)

Commissioners also had to rule that the project’s violation of downtown design rules on height and parking requirements would be allowed.

In a series of votes, commissioners gave the approval:

• They voted 4-1 to allow the height despite the Historic Resources Commission finding. Commissioner Mike Rundle was the opposing vote.
• They voted 3-2 to allow angled parking on the street in front of the project, in spite of downtown design guidelines. Commissioners David Schauner and Boog Highberger were opposed.
• They voted 4-1 to allow the height despite the downtown design guidelines. Rundle was opposed.
• The voted 4-1 to approve the site plan, with Rundle again opposed.
• And they voted unanimously to move 67 city parking spaces from the parking lot of Borders Books, Music & Cafe down the block to a lot that will be built with the new development.

Dunfield and Commissioner Sue Hack were the only commissioners to vote for every provision of the plan.

Highberger voted for most of the items, saying his belief in “mixed-use” developments outweighed his height concerns this time.

“I don’t think those concerns are exaggerated,” Highberger said. “But, I think I can talk all I want about mixed-use development, but I can’t make it happen. Bo Harris is here with a project.”

Harris met with neighborhood residents for a year while developing the project before bringing it to City Hall. Despite some continuing opposition, he said Tuesday night it was the right approach to take.

“I don’t think it’s too much trouble,” he said. “I think it’s the only way to accomplish things in this community and others.”

Construction could begin in 90 days, he said.