Bellaire city council members debate proposed changes to Corridor Mixed Use zoning district

Bellaire City Council discussed a list of amendments regarding the Corridor Mixed Use zoning district during a March 2 City Council meeting. The CMU district runs from North First Street to Chimney Rock Road, adjacent to Bissonnet Street, and is made up of mixed-use developments.

Some context

The recommended amendments were presented by Director of Development Services Travis Tanner and were recommended by the Planning and Zoning Committee.

The proposed amendments include:

Removing veterinary services from the definition of “Business and professional offices and services”Designating veterinary services as a specific useRevising the permitted use of multifamily dwellings so that such use would be allowed only through an approved planned development application and only as part of a mixed-use development, as well as reducing the maximum allowable density from 30 units per acre to 20 units per acreEstablishing a height-setback plane for developments fronting major streetsReducing minimum front-yard setback requirements for sites with less than 100 feet of depth from street frontageExtending the front building setback line and front height-setback plane by 5 feet each on lots greater than 150 feet in depthReducing the rear height-setback plane maximum from 27 feet to 17 feet for commercial developments abutting residential districts

The discussion

During the meeting, council members debated the specifics of a front height-setback plane and a rear height-setback plane. One amendment the council voted on was to raise the minimum front yard setback from at least 5% of the site depth to 15% of the site depth for properties less than 100 feet.

The vote was tied 3-3 and failed to pass without a majority vote. Council members Catherine Lewis, Brian Witt and Jackie Georgiou voted in favor of the amendment.

No other proposed amendments were voted on during the meeting.

What happens next?

The vote has been postponed to the March 16 meeting, where council members will revisit the proposed changes.

“This is a very difficult area. … I’m committed to taking as long as it reasonably takes to get this thing to something that we really, really want,” Mayor Gus Papas said. “Making sure that we get it right is more important than getting it done expediently.”