The Maryland Book Exchange complex would provide students with nearby off-campus housing. In the above illustration from January, design plans depict the transformed complex from Route 1.

The Prince George’s County Planning Board approved a plan for developing the Maryland Book Exchange site Thursday despite the College Park City Council’s unanimous vote against the revised proposal.

The proposed apartment complex will provide students with a more conveniently located housing option off the campus and institute a more modern look to Old Town College Park — an addition city officials said will be detrimental to the historic character of the neighborhood. Nevertheless, the planning board voted 3-1 in support of the plan, which will now move forward to the county District Council’s review.

Planning board chairwoman Elizabeth Hewlett said a lack of communication between the city and the planners marred the development’s planning process, resulting in an unusual degree of gridlock for a project of this type.

“The city has an obligation to be reasonable, and the applicant has an obligation to try to work very hard with the city,” she said during the meeting.

The six-story building will stretch from the current Book Exchange site on Route 1 to the parking lot on Yale Avenue. The development will step down to a three-story building with a two-story slanted roof as it leads into residential and historic areas, including the castle-like facade of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church on College Avenue. The building will also have three AstroTurf courtyards and a parking lot on the lower level.

Although the developers attempted to revise their plan so the building would blend in with the surrounding environment — for instance, by adding additional bricks to certain parts of the building plan to make it seem less monolithic — many residents and students said it will destroy the character of Old Town College Park.

“I think having a high-rise would mar the image [of the area], especially when tall housing developments are already established on different sections of the Route,” junior community health major Rachel Shields said.

“They have a right to complain,” freshman biology major Mahmoud Abusin added. “Putting a huge apartment next to small, little stores seems strange.”

Nevertheless, some students said the new apartment building could aid the city’s revitalization.

“I think the building will attract more businesses, because other modernized buildings are very popular with the crowd at College Park,” said sophomore computer science major Meghna Taneja. “I think the general population here would enjoy a modern building.”

However, with the wealth of student housing complexes built in recent years, including the Enclave at 8700, Mazza Grandmarc and University View II, many students said the problem is not a lack of off-campus student housing, but a lack of affordable homes and apartments.

“Many of the nearby housing options charge at their premium rates, just because they know students have a need to live near campus,” Shields said.

Others, such as junior English and communication major Katy Hancock, agreed that adding another apartment complex could saturate the area with pricey student housing. However, several business owners were excited about the prospect of expanding their pool of customers living within walking distance to their doors.

“It’s going to bring in so much business, and it will help boost our sales,” said Potbelly Manager Jannah Madyun.