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Board approves convenience store at 1415 Sycamore with code inspections and display restrictions
Summary
A long-vacant Sycamore Street property will reopen as a convenience store after the Zoning Hearing Board granted a variance and special exception, subject to building inspection, compliance with convenience-store operational standards, and limits on outside displays.
The Zoning Hearing Board granted a variance and special exception permitting a convenience store at 1415 Sycamore Street, approving relief from the permitted use and from off-street parking requirements because the building occupies the entire site.
Planning Director Jeffrey Knight told the board the building has a commercial history and has been essentially vacant for years. Knight said county tax-parcel records show a storefront use in the past and that the property's long-term vacancy and deterioration created a hardship supporting the variance. The planning bureau also recommended that the applicant conform to the requirements in Section 7-3-09.2q of the zoning code for convenience stores, comply with Chapter 7-3-25 signage rules, not place products or displays in the sidewalk/yard, and allow a comprehensive codes-bureau inspection to verify utilities and structural safety prior to occupancy.
Knight said the use would have required about nine off-street parking spaces based on square footage, but the building has no room for parking. He reported ample curbfront parking availability on Sycamore and nearby blocks at most times of day and noted many customers for this type of store are walking from the neighborhood.
Applicants Saad Ali and Hessam Ali said they plan to reestablish a neighborhood convenience store carrying food, produce and some halal products and that they will install 24-hour security cameras and keep the premises swept and maintained. In response to board questions, they said the owner will have flood insurance and that they plan to accept SNAP/EBT and credit cards. They indicated operational hours would be roughly early morning through evening (discussed as roughly 7 a.m. to 9–10 p.m., with possible seasonal variation).
Board members pressed the applicants on security, trash management, hours, and whether they would sell tobacco (applicants said some tobacco products were possible). Knight noted the planning commission recommended approval with conditions to ensure safety and code compliance. After a short recess and final discussion, a motion to approve the variance and special exception conditioned on the planning commission's recommended conditions was moved, seconded and approved by voice vote. The board chair said a written decision will be issued within 45 days.
Votes at a glance: The board approved case 2605 (1415 Sycamore Street) with conditions: conform to section 7-3-09.2q convenience store standards, adhere to signage rules in chapter 7-3-25, no items left on the sidewalk/yard, and allow a comprehensive codes-bureau inspection prior to occupancy.
