Design details for the new St. Patrick Soup Kitchen building were approved by Troy’s Planning Commission Jan. 23, the same day opponents of the downtown location learned a hearing on their referendum protest was canceled.

Location opponents still will have the opportunity to air concerns about rejected referendum petitions before the Miami County Board of Elections on Feb. 14.

The petitions challenged city council’s September rezoning decision of property at East Water and North Mulberry streets to a business designation that allows a soup kitchen.

The protest of the rezoning decision was filed with the elections office after opponents were told their petitions fell eight signatures short of the 785 needed to place the zoning referendum on the ballot.

The opponents, including Ken and Rosaleen Rayman and Harold and Jean Melvi, who live near the proposed site, said elections office staff gave them three different numbers of how many people voted in the 2010 gubernatorial election. That number is used to calculate signatures needed for a referendum petition

A recent recheck of the petition signatures by election staff, versus the original check by part time workers, showed the petitions were 61 signatures shy of the required number.

As a result, the official protest hearing was canceled because the lack of sufficient signatures invalidates the petitions. “Nothing is going to change that,” said Drew Higgins, county elections director.

The board noted at an earlier meeting that by law the responsibility for determining the required number of signatures lies with the petitioners.

Rosaleen Rayman said the opponents will be at the elections board meeting. “We did everything we were supposed to do,” she said of the referendum petitions. “It is disheartening.”

Soup kitchen supporters and the location opponents were at the Planning Commission review of exterior building elements, such as building materials, roofing, lights and landscaping. The review was required by city code because the site is in the city historic district.

The building’s first floor will house the kitchen and dining area while the second floor will have meeting rooms and an office. The basement will be for storage.

City staff recommended the plan approval saying they found the proposed building “compatible” with other buildings in the neighborhood. The commission approved the plan after soup kitchen representatives agreed with a suggested addition of two more windows to the building side facing Water Street. The plan originally had one window for that wall.

A groundbreaking is scheduled for 4 p.m. Feb. 4.

“We’re excited about the planning commission approval. It’s the next step toward a new soup kitchen to serve the Troy community,” said Greg Taylor of the soup kitchen board.