JEFFERSON — Two local churches have brought rezoning requests before the Jefferson City Council and one has been given approval, while the other has requested that action be delayed for another month.

During its regularly scheduled voting session Monday, the council approved a rezoning request from First United Methodist Church. The church was requesting that a nearly two-acre piece of property be rezoned from medium density residential to office institutional to allow for the construction of a parking lot and office building.

The rezoning approval, as moved by councilman David S. Varnedoe Jr., is only valid as long as the church owns the property. If the property changes ownership, the zoning reverts back to medium density residential.

At the previous work session, the measure drew a large group of residents in the surrounding neighborhood who opposed the rezoning request.

A rezoning request from another church also drew a large crowd of opposition at the previous work session. Harvest Chapel Ministries sought to have a one-acre plot be rezoned from office institutional to highway commercial for the construction of a Dollar General Store.

Prior to Monday’s meeting, the applicant requested that the council delay the request until its Jan. 26 voting session.

The meeting was the council’s regular voting session, which was held at the Jefferson Civic Center on Kissam Street.

The City Council will meet again on Jan. 12 for its regularly scheduled work session.

During the meeting, the City Council adjourned to an executive session, after which the group voted to discontinue its pursuit of a 39-acre piece of property adjacent to the city’s recreational department on Old Pendergrass Road.