Bellaire planning commission weighs front- and rear-height limits, multifamily limits in CMU rewrite

The Bellaire Planning and Zoning Commission on Sept. 11 reviewed proposed revisions to the city's Commercial Mixed Use (CMU) zoning rules, focusing on front- and rear-building height setback planes, how multifamily housing will be handled, and whether large redevelopment sites should require plan-development review.

City staff presented a package of changes that would add a front-facing height-setback plane for buildings along major corridors (Bissonnet, Newcastle, South Rice and similar streets), lower the trigger height at which upper floors must step back, and treat any multifamily component of a mixed-use project as requiring planned-development (PD) review rather than permitting it by right.

The issue matters because many CMU parcels are small, abut single-family neighborhoods and have historically had shallow front yards; commissioners and staff said they were trying to balance two goals: allowing property owners a realistic path to reinvest or redevelop and preventing long stretches of taller building faces that create an enclosed, "canyon" effect along the street.

How the draft would work

- Front setback/stepback: Staff proposed maintaining the minimum front yard (currently 15 feet), but…