TAMPA - The city council unanimously denied a land-use change that would have allowed four single-family homes along North Boulevard to become residential offices.

The homeowners said their properties would be more valuable as residential offices. They said their proposal included conditions to maintain the residential look of the properties.

Council members heard Thursday night from a divided audience, with some supporting the property owners and others fearing the change would hurt the Riverside Heights residential neighborhood.

The stretch of North Boulevard from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to Columbus Drive has single-family homes and residential offices. But council members said they were concerned about making a change that would affect the residential neighborhood.

Councilman John Dingfelder said he worried that the requested land-use category could allow for other development, such as town homes and condominiums.