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Council approves façade and setback clarifications for 4404 Chimametere Parkway project, adds conditions
Summary
The council granted clarification/variance for façade rules and setback conflicts at 4404 Chimametere Parkway for a phased commercial/warehouse project, adopting an option that the applicant either build a 51% non‑metal frontage on the future front building or install an 8‑foot fence with landscaping as an interim mitigation.
Youngsville City Council approved variances and clarifications Jan. 9 related to façade requirements and a conflict with adjacent residential zoning for a proposed construction, landscape and interior design facility at 4404 Chimametere Parkway. The motion (mover: Lindy Bolgiano; second: Mr. Nylund) passed on a unanimous vote.
The parcel lies in the Ducharme Industrial Park, an area the council exempted from the city's 51% non‑metal façade requirement except for the portion of a lot that fronts Schimme Metairie Parkway. Staff and the applicant said the definition of that fronting area was unclear and created a practical problem for a phased project in which a warehouse would be built farther back on the lot and a storefront built later closer to the parkway.
Applicant Blake Romero described the site plan as phased and said the first building would be a storage/warehouse facility; he said he and his partners "are all willing to put up a privacy fence in front of the warehouse with some landscaping to kinda shield" the adjacent residences during the interim. Romero also said the final front building would be built when market conditions allow and that the front building would comply with façade requirements when it is constructed.
Council members noted a separate issue: Sweetwater Pointe Cottages, a residential development built within the industrial‑platted area, created a conflict that increased side setback requirements for the commercial property under the land‑use code. The applicant asked for relief from the more restrictive side‑setback standard that resulted from that adjacent residential zoning.
After discussion, the council approved the applicant's requests subject to conditions accepted by the applicant: either (a) the fronting elevation of the existing warehouse that faces Schimme Metairie Parkway meet the city's façade requirement, or (b) the applicant install an 8‑foot privacy fence with shrubbery and screening along the shared edge until the front building is constructed and can meet the façade standard. Council members also requested that the applicant study flipping the site's internal drive configuration to place vehicle and materials storage away from the residences; the applicant agreed to explore that option before final site layout.
Final council roll call on the motion was recorded as: Lindy Bolgiano yes, Blake Romero yes, Mr. Nylund yes, Miss Champine yes. The council's action clarifies how the façade requirement will be applied to long, deep industrial parcels that are developed in phases and establishes interim screening options to reduce impacts on nearby residences.
