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NATCHEZ — On Tuesday, the Natchez Board of Aldermen voted unanimously to approve a rezoning request from Glennis O’Neal for property he owns at 96 East Oak Street.

O’Neal applied to rezone the property from R3 residential to B1 business to operate a small food retail establishment or restaurant.

When his application reached the city’s planning commission, he was informed that the B1 zoning district does not permit restaurants. However, the lot could be rezoned to B1 so that he could host mobile food vending.

Interim City Planner Rico Giani told aldermen that O’Neal was amenable to a mobile food truck or trailer to conform with the city’s food vending ordinance. The planning commission voted to recommend the zoning change.

Giani said the lot in question is located at the key intersection of the historic Minorville property and just across the street from the B1 district.

Ward 4 Alderwoman Felicia Bridgewater-Irving said she is in favor of the change.

“This will be good as long as he understands it’s not a restaurant. It’s just mobile food with operation hours of 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.,” she said.

Bridgewater-Irving said O’Neal would be responsible for ensuring that no food is consumed on the premises and that the traffic flow on the streets is not impeded.

“They cannot stop in the roadway. They need to get their food and go,” she said.

“When I was a youth in that area, we had a number of businesses — a tailor, lawnmower repair, Charlie Harris’s body shop, a washeteria. It was a neighborhood that had a lot of successful businesses,” she said.

Ward 6 Alderman Curtis Moroney said he drove by the area on Tuesday morning.

“It is right there next to Minor Street. It’s just enlarging the present B1 zoning by just that one lot. It’s family property and they want to keep that family property and I understand the pride of ownership. It seems like the activity could be good for the area. My only concern is the precedent we set,” Moroney said.