Planning commission recommends rezoning of 1.476 acres from Highway Commercial to Limited Commercial

The Idaho Falls Planning and Zoning Commission on April 1 voted unanimously to recommend that the mayor and city council rezone a 1.476-acre triangular parcel from Highway Commercial (HC) to Limited Commercial (LC) to enable a planned unit development (PUD).

Connect Engineering’s representative told the commission the parcel is “just under 1 acre, 1 and a half acres,” and that the developer has purchased the triangle-shaped piece along with adjacent LC land and intends to include it in a PUD. The applicant said the site is southwest of a Maverik and described it as currently bare ground.

City staff told the commission the property was annexed in 2020 and lies in the city’s limited development airport overlay; the staff report recommended approval, stating the LC zoning is consistent with the comprehensive plan’s designation of the area as “mixed-use centers and corridors” and noting that residential development in LC would need to meet R3A standards. Staff clarified the rezone would change only the underlying zone, not the airport overlay.

The commission opened a public hearing, received no public comment and closed the hearing. After brief commissioner discussion, Commissioner Canton moved to recommend approval of the rezoning to the mayor and city council; Commissioner Eider seconded. The motion passed by voice vote; the transcript records the decision as unanimous and does not list individual votes.

The recommendation by the Planning and Zoning Commission sends the rezoning request to the mayor and city council for final decision; staff and the applicant noted future review of a PUD and plat matters will occur in subsequent hearings.