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Council approves Highway Business (C-4) zoning for 6.11-acre annex for retail development
Summary
The City Council rezoned a 6.11-acre recently annexed parcel north of U.S. Highway 72 West to Highway Business C-4 for retail development; planners said the city has no tree-protection requirement for the site beyond credit for retained canopy.
The Huntsville City Council on April 24 approved an ordinance rezoning 6.11 acres on the north side of U.S. Highway 72 West, east of Promenade Point Parkway, to Highway Business C-4 for an anticipated retail development.
Why it matters: The parcel was recently annexed and the new zoning would allow highway-oriented commercial uses; nearby residents asked about protections for existing trees.
Thomas Nunez, manager of planning and zoning services, told the council the rezoning does not introduce new permitted uses but rather corrects the online numbering and aligns the city’s records with external publishing (Municode). Nunez said the request is consistent with a petitioner seeking Highway Business C-4 zoning for retail development.
At the public hearing Joy Johnson asked, "Is there any protection for those trees after this gets zoned for Highway Business C 4?" Nunez replied that while there are no specific protective measures requiring existing trees to remain, property owners do receive credit for preserved trees when meeting the city's landscape and paved-vehicular-area requirements: "Any trees that were to remain, the property owner receives credit and due diligence for the established trees that are there." He added, "However, we do not have any current protective measures for the trees that are there."
Council members voted to approve the ordinance. Planning staff said tree credits and the city’s landscape rules will apply at site plan stage, but explicit tree-protection laws for that parcel were not part of the rezoning.
Ending: The rezoning clears the way for retail development under Highway Business C-4 rules; retained trees may yield landscape credit but are not protected by a separate preservation ordinance in this approval.
