Socorro planners postpone vote on parking ordinance amendment to develop manufacturing standards

The City of Socorro Planning and Zoning Commission voted Thursday to postpone consideration of an ordinance that would amend Chapter 46, Article 5, Section 46-631 of the city code to change off-street parking requirements for developments.

Planner Botello described the proposed amendment as changing the current requirement from "1 space per 500 square feet of net leasable area" to "1 space per 2,000 square feet of enclosed floor area, plus 1 parking space per 500 square feet of office space, and 0.5 additional plus 0.05 additional, trailer parking spaces for each accessible dock and or overhead door." Botello said staff recommended approval of the amendment to reduce the number of variance requests developers submit to the city.

Commissioners pressed staff on where the numbers came from and whether other Texas cities had comparable standards. Botello said staff had looked at examples from other border cities with similar populations, including Lubbock and El Paso, and said that "typically what we see is a variance request at around 2,000 square feet," which informed the proposal. When asked whether the change would have satisfied recent variance requests, Botello estimated, "maybe 90% of them."

Several commissioners urged staff to prepare separate parking recommendations for manufacturing versus warehousing. Commissioner Enrique Cisneros and others said manufacturing has different parking needs and should be treated separately; some commissioners said they wanted to see staff research and a manufacturing-specific recommendation before sending the ordinance to City Council. Commissioner Cisneros moved to postpone the item to the next meeting; Commissioner Andrew Arroyos seconded. The motion carried with three ayes (Cisneros, Arroyos and David Estrada).

Why it matters: the amendment, if later adopted by council, would reduce the number of parking spaces required for warehouses and distribution centers and could change the footprint allowed for new industrial or commercial buildings. Commissioners asked staff for comparative examples and a separate manufacturing standard so council and the public can review the proposed formula with more context.

Planner Botello told commissioners the change was intended to "drastically reduce the amount of variances requested" and to provide a consistent formula for developers and staff. Commissioners did not take final action Thursday and directed staff to return with additional research and a draft that separates manufacturing from warehousing before forwarding the amendment to City Council.