Commission backs neighborhood‑scale commercial (C1) for 104 North Olive; declines C2 upgrade

The Planning and Zoning Commission approved a recommendation to change the land use and rezone 104 North Olive from single‑family residential to neighborhood commercial (C1), supporting the applicant’s stated plan for a small professional office while declining full C2 commercial zoning.

The applicant said the intent is a small office for personal professional use adjacent to the owner’s existing maintenance property across the street and that the house on the lot would remain in use in the short term. Staff advised that while C2 would allow a wider range of commercial uses, the comprehensive plan’s mixed‑density residential/place‑type guidance and the zoning pattern along nearby Austin Street made C1 the more appropriate, transitional classification. Staff noted that professional office uses are permitted by right in C1 and therefore the applicant’s stated goal could be accomplished without up‑zoning to C2.

Commission discussion focused on the compatibility of the proposed office with adjacent single‑family properties and on avoiding a precedent that would encourage more intensive parcel‑by‑parcel up‑zones along the corridor. The motion approved the land‑use change and the C1 rezoning and will be sent to mayor and council for final action.