Commission approves Plan El Paso amendment and rezoning to allow neighborhood commercial on Westside Drive despite public concern

The City Plan Commission approved a comprehensive plan amendment to change the future land use designation and a related rezoning to permit neighborhood commercial development for a 5.1-acre vacant property south of Artcraft Road and west of Westside Drive.

Staffer Andrew Sloane said the applicant requested to change the Plan El Paso future land use designation from O-3 (agriculture) to G-4 (suburban walkable) and to rezone from RF (ranch and farm) to C-1 (neighborhood commercial) to allow a convenience store with gas pumps and a shopping center. “Access to the subject property will be from Westside Drive,” Sloane said, and he noted any vehicular access from Artcraft Road (a state highway) requires coordination and approval from TxDOT.

Staff recommended approval with conditions including: review of a detailed site development plan prior to certificates of occupancy; a minimum 500-foot separation between establishments that both derive 51% or more of income from on-site alcohol sales and provide outdoor amplified sound; no office-warehouse uses; construction of a 5-foot sidewalk along Westside Drive prior to occupancy; and no egress for semi trucks heading southbound on Westside Drive.

Speakers from the public raised concerns that a gas station and drive-through businesses are not compatible with the Northwest Upper Valley Plan’s call for neighborhood-compatible uses and asked for community amenities such as a recreation center, dog park or community garden. Staff and the applicant said C-1 is defined as neighborhood commercial in Title 20 and that final mitigation of access and design occurs at detailed site plan review.

The commission took the items together, heard public comment, and then voted to approve the Plan El Paso amendment and the rezoning with the staff conditions. A roll-call vote recorded five yeas and two nays.