Planning staff previews zoning code update; proposes airport, gateway and node overlay districts

Planning staff told the Olive Branch Planning Commission that a multi-stage zoning-code update is underway and that staff will prepare draft overlay-district regulations for the airport, gateway corridors and key community nodes for review at the commission—s next meeting.

Staff said the update aims to move the city away from universal use of planned developments and toward a consolidated land-development code with conventional zoning plus targeted overlay districts. The first phase the department plans to bring forward includes a code text update and a zoning-map update, with a goal of adopting the first part of the code and the map by the end of the year. Staff said a draft was posted on the city website for more than six months and that staff will solicit developer input before finalizing language.

Staff described three overlay concepts for early consideration:

1) An airport overlay around the municipal airport that would leave the underlying M-2 heavy-industrial zoning but allow narrowly defined uses (for example, temporary housing for flight students) subject to specific design standards and approvals. Staff said the overlay could also prohibit features incompatible with aviation safety — for example, retention ponds that attract birds and ground-mounted mechanical equipment in front yards near runways — and provide administrative design flexibility where strict tree or planting requirements would conflict with safety.

2) A gateway-design overlay for key corridors such as Highway 302/Highway 305 and parts of Goodman Road, intended to shape the public-facing character of entrances to the city. Staff described possible standards used in other projects and in previous Quick Trip project text: masonry facades, parapet screening for rooftop equipment, screening for service and loading zones, low-profile signage, and streetscape elements within a defined distance of the roadway (commonly 250 feet from the right-of-way).

3) Node or —sense-of-place— overlays for important intersections and development nodes (examples cited: Hacks Cross/Goodman, Exit 1/Memphis frontage) to preserve or create a coordinated character at intersections and to ensure that infill or redevelopment supports the desired image of a place.

Commissioners broadly supported the approach and asked staff to produce specific draft regulations and mapping for the commission—s packet next month. Commissioners discussed practical concerns such as how overlays would apply to existing development (grandfathering) and how an overlay could affect multiple private property owners and property values along a corridor; staff said existing uses would be grandfathered and that overlays would apply to new development or redevelopment.

Staff also noted the potential for interjurisdictional coordination on corridors that cross municipal boundaries (for example, Goodman Road) and said outreach to nearby municipalities and developers will be part of the next steps. The commission did not take formal action; staff will return with draft overlay language and mapping in the next packet for further review.