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Des Moines City Council today expected to vote on two development-related issues

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A Des Moines developer is hopeful the City Council today will approve his request to rezone the site of a former west-side school and church into an event center and hotel. Jeff Young, who owns the former Franklin Junior High School at 4801 Franklin Ave., gained unanimous approval in April from the Plan and Zoning Commission to rezone the parcel with certain conditions. Four weeks later, the council, after a 2 1/2-hour public hearing at which concerns were raised about noise and traffic, delayed until today a vote to rezone the parcel from a limited neighborhood retail commercial district to a planned unit development, or PUD. The council is also expected to approve the creation of a nonprofit entity to oversee a stepped-up effort to revitalize neighborhoods. Invest DSM, would develop revitalization programs, distribute money to the programs and manage other related activities, according to a city document. The corporation would not replace neighborhood programs the city already has in place or the city’s Community Development department, city officials said.