Council approves several zoning map amendments, including Dickinson Plaza rezoning to auto-centric commercial

The Dickinson City Council voted to adopt several zoning map amendments during its regular meeting.

On second reading the council approved an ordinance amending the official zoning map for approximately 6.677 acres located at 4015 Dickinson Avenue from Urban Transition to Downtown zoning. The motion was moved and seconded and passed by voice vote.

Later the council held a public hearing and approved a separate ordinance to rezone approximately 8.813 acres (parcels at 3401 Gulf Freeway, 3429 Gulf Freeway and 3535 Gulf Freeway) commonly known as Dickinson Plaza from Mixed-Use (MU) to Auto-Centric Commercial (AC). Planning staff said the rezoning would align the zoning with the existing auto-oriented, surface-parking configuration and expand permitted commercial uses (medical uses, auto sales, car wash, fuel sales, self-storage and other AC-permitted uses) while removing the mixed-use district'specific residential allowances such as upper-story housing. Vijay Mishra, representing the property owner, told council the center is approximately 80% occupied and the owner expects AC zoning will broaden the tenant pool and improve the city's tax base.

City staff confirmed that the rezoning would remove certain building-design requirements tied to mixed-use zoning (massing and articulation rules) but said those requirements typically apply only to new construction. The council approved the Dickinson Plaza rezoning after a public presentation by the applicant and a brief council discussion about correcting prior mapping inconsistencies across the city.

Both rezoning ordinances passed on voice votes; no roll-call tallies were recorded in the public transcript for these items.