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Commission hears commercial zoning cleanups: merge C1a/C2a, allow tiny homes in RV parks, consider alcohol‑permit zones
Summary
At the Jan. 27 workshop staff recommended simplifying some commercial districts (merge C1a and C2a), clarified that tiny homes on wheels are RVs and should be sited in RV parks, added taxidermy in commercial uses, and suggested aligning alcohol permitting with specific commercial zones to streamline state licensing.
ALPINE, Texas — Alpine planning staff used a Jan. 27 workshop to outline several commercial‑zoning clarifications and cleanups intended to simplify the code and ease permitting.
Staff proposal highlights: - Merge C1a and C2a: Jessica said C1a and C2a are functionally identical and that combining the two colors/districts on the zoning map would reduce confusion. "There's not a lot of yellow and there's not a lot of purple," she said, and the allowed uses are essentially the same. - Tiny homes and RV parks: Staff clarified that tiny homes built on wheels are treated as RVs and would be allowed in RV parks or commercial camping areas only. Foundation‑based small houses proposed for R‑4 would be separate from tiny homes on wheels. - Encourage RV parks and campgrounds for some small‑home options: Staff discussed permitting tiny‑home parks or campgrounds in C1a/C2a as a way to provide affordable, movable housing while allowing the city to remove abandoned units via impound rules applicable to vehicles/RVs. - Additions and cleanups: Staff noted specific cleanups such as wording in the taxidermy entry for commercial districts (concerns about hazardous chemicals led staff to keep taxidermy as a commercial use), clarifying kiosk and home‑occupation rules, and fixing conditional‑use wording so Planning & Zoning makes recommendations to council rather than “impose conditions.” - Alcohol permitting: Staff proposed limiting off‑premise and on‑premise alcohol sales to specific commercial districts (C1, C1A, C2) to streamline state licensing checks and reduce ad hoc council reviews. The proposed draft is informed by a model ordinance (Richardson) and would align local zoning checks with Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission licensing timeframes.
Commissioners asked for grammatical fixes and clearer phrasing in several places in the draft ordinance (for example, hours of operation language and asterisked footnotes for taxidermy). Staff said the draft will be revised and returned for formal action. No formal votes were taken at the workshop.
