Weighing preservation of the historic Malbis district against the pressures of new development, the Daphne City Council opted not to vote on a request to annex and rezone roughly 18 acres of land near U.S. 90 and Alabama 181, effectively shelving the proposal for now.
The request, brought by a Malbis landowner, sought to bring the vacant property from unincorporated Baldwin County into the city of Daphne and shift its zoning from single-family residential to a mix of high-density uses that would have allowed townhomes and general business development. Facing a lack of council support, the property owner’s attorney withdrew the request rather than force a vote.
The land currently sits within an 850-acre tract that Baldwin County commissioners designated a historic district several months earlier. That designation places any construction, demolition or major landscaping changes on the property under review by a county architectural preservation board — protections that would have disappeared had the land been annexed into Daphne without similar safeguards.
The property traces back to the old Malbis Plantation, a roughly 10,000-acre Greek agricultural settlement established in the early 1900s that gradually declined after the Great Depression, with descendants eventually selling off much of the land. Portions of the original plantation now make up some of Baldwin County’s most recognizable developments, while roughly 3,000 acres remain under the plantation’s control.
Nearly a dozen residents spoke at Monday’s meeting, echoing concerns raised at an earlier public hearing in January. Neighbors along a road bordering the property argued the rezoning threatened the area’s character, while the landowner’s attorney contended the request aligned with the city’s long-range comprehensive plan for commercial growth along the U.S. 90 corridor.
A longtime resident of the area urged the council to protect what she described as one of Baldwin County’s more distinctive communities, warning that approving piecemeal rezoning requests could erode the historic character shared by several small Baldwin County communities.
Representatives of the plantation’s governing board told the council they are working on a long-sought master development plan covering the plantation’s remaining acreage, and said they intend to coordinate with the property owner, a nearby homeowners association and the city as that plan takes shape.
Council members said they were encouraged by that commitment and indicated they would begin drafting an ordinance aimed at better coordinating historic district protections between the county and city during future annexations, citing similar concerns in other historic Baldwin County communities.