In a unanimous vote, the City Council rejected a developer's application to rezone a 1-acre lot at Dixon Boulevard and Indian River Drive for a four-story condominium.

Alex Greenwood, the developer and a former City Council member, requested the property be rezoned for a maximum of seven units. As it stands, the lot is zoned for a maximum of two single-family homes.

During an hourlong public hearing -- the second on the proposed development -- a dozen residents of Indian River Drive urged the council to keep their neighborhood protected, private and condo-free.

Greenwood asked the council to set aside the issue -- which had been done numerous times in past months -- to allow newly elected members to acquaint themselves with the issue.

Instead, Mayor Mike Blake called for a vote.

"In my inauguration speech I stated the citizens of Cocoa come first. That's rule No. 1," Blake said. "And rule No. 2 is refer back to rule No. 1: The citizens come first."

For Indian River Drive residents, Blake's words were refreshing.

"We thought we had a chance because of some of the things Mike Blake has said about listening to the community and planned development," said Todd Hause, who organized the neighborhood effort to stop the rezoning. "I definitely feel like we were more heard."

In August, Cocoa's nine-member planning and zoning board unanimously rejected Greenwood's request. But last month, after granting Greenwood opportunities to revise his development plans, the former City Council approved his request with a 4-1 vote.

Greenwood said the latest rejection will not stop his plans to develop the lot with multiple-family dwellings. He said he will apply for a different type of zoning that will allow for a maximum of 15 units per acre and resubmit the same design plans that were rejected Tuesday.

According to the city attorney, Greenwood is not permitted to submit the same or a similar application to the city for six months.

"I'm not quitting, this is just part of the process," said Greenwood. "I expected controversy. This is not going to be something that's going to die."