Aransas Pass council amends peddlers ordinance, approves rezoning and several event and project requests; mobile-food rules tabled

Aransas Pass City Council considered a range of land-use, permitting and civic projects during a meeting that included public hearings and several votes on ordinances, rezoning and project solicitations.

The council voted to amend Chapter 21 (the peddlers/peddlers-to-salesperson ordinance) by striking Article 4, which had addressed aggressive solicitation and panhandling. The council adopted the ordinance as amended after a public hearing and discussion over whether panhandling should be regulated within the peddlers framework or handled in a separate ordinance.

The council approved rezoning approximately 37.6431 acres at the northwest corner of U.S. Highway 35 Bypass and Resendiz Road from PD (Planned Development) to LI (Light Industrial) to allow a proposed business park. Developer Joseph Broussard presented conceptual site plans showing storefront facades facing Bypass 35 and up to about 13 individual units in an initial phase; Broussard said the project would be phased and that infrastructure such as concrete streets and drainage would be installed with phase 1.

Council members held a public hearing on proposed changes to the city's mobile food rules (renaming "mobile food establishment" to "mobile food unit" and consolidating short- and long-term permits into an annual $50 permit). After extended public comment about potential impacts at the harbor, and whether food trucks should be handled by a special-events permit or by zoning changes, the council voted to table that ordinance for further review and a proposed workshop on harbor-specific policy.

Other actions approved included event permits, project solicitations and contract awards: the council cleared a destination marketing request to host the Saltwater Mardi Gras in February 2026, approved the Redford Ranch Foundation's Smoke on the Water barbecue event in September 2025, authorized issuing requests for proposals for a Highway 35 welcome sign and for a concrete kayak ramp for Lighthouse Lakes, and authorized requests for qualifications for engineering services on the Sherwood Forest water and wastewater Phase 3 project and for a feasibility study for a Beach at The Flats.

On public safety and infrastructure procurement, the council approved an amendment related to the Commission on State Emergency Communications (CSEC) Next Generation 9-1-1 grant, awarded a NextGen 9-1-1 core-services contract to AT&T (the only responsive bidder), and approved the fire chief's acceptance of a surplus U.S. Department of Defense light-wheeled vehicle from the Texas A&M Forest Service to support wildland response. The council also authorized issuance of an RFQ for architectural and engineering services to plan a remodel of the fire station and police department.

Public comment included several residents raising local concerns. Resident Richard Titus detailed difficulties he said he'd encountered when trying to move a conditional-use permit forward and said he felt the process had been handled inconsistently; city staff and the manager advised following the municipal process and resubmitting paperwork. Resident Alex Tan and other neighbors asked the council and police to enforce nuisance animal rules after repeated complaints about a neighbor's animals; staff advised they had initiated the municipal-court complaint process. Multiple residents spoke for and against broad allowances for food trucks at the harbor, prompting the council to request clearer regulatory language and a dedicated workshop.

Votes at a glance

- Reappoint Karen Gail to Coastal Bend Foundation for two-year term: approved. - Appoint Gloria Pena to Library Board for two-year term (to Feb. 2027): approved. - Ordinance PZ-2024-24 (Chapter 21 peddlers → salespeople; definitions, fees, penalties) amended by removing Article 4 (aggressive solicitation/panhandling) and adopted: approved. - Ordinance PZ-2024-25 (rename mobile food establishment → mobile food unit; consolidated annual permit; allow mobile food units in certain zones): TABLED for further revision/workshop. - Rezoning (PZ2024-25) PD → Light Industrial, property ID 58189 (approx. 37.6431 acres) at N. corner of Hwy 35 Bypass & Resendiz Road (buyer Joseph Broussard): approved. - Saltwater Mardi Gras (Destination Aransas Pass), Harbor Pointe Park, Feb. 20' Feb. 21, 2026: approved. - Issue RFP for Highway 35 Bypass North welcome sign: approved. - Redford Ranch Foundation ' Smoke on the Water barbecue event at Shrimpery Grounds, Sept. 24'29, 2025: approved. - Issue RFQ for engineering services: Sherwood Forest Water & Wastewater Project Phase 3: approved. - Issue RFP for concrete kayak ramp (Lighthouse Lakes improvement): approved. - Issue RFQ for feasibility study for Beach at The Flats: approved. - CSEC NextGen 9-1-1 fund amendment No. 4: approved. - Award RFP 2025-001 NextGen 9-1-1 core services to AT&T (first-year cost $34,955; recurring annual $34,428): approved. - Fire chief authorized to accept surplus DoD light-wheeled vehicle from Texas A&M Forest Service: approved (no cost to city; upfit to come from fire department operating budget). - Issue RFQ for architectural/engineering services to plan remodel of fire station and police department: approved.

Why it matters

The peddlers ordinance amendment narrows how the city will regulate street solicitation and vending by removing panhandling from the consolidated peddlers framework; council members said they prefer to craft a separate, enforceable approach. The rezoning vote opens a corridor for commercial and light industrial businesses that city supporters say could attract local suppliers, jobs and tax revenue; concerned neighbors warned rezoning is broad and could allow future industrial uses not discussed by the developer. Tabling the mobile-food ordinance leaves the harbor-specific question unresolved and signals the council will seek more specific limits or designated harbor areas before allowing mobile vendors to station there regularly.

What happens next

Staff will prepare a separate ordinance or workshop language on aggressive solicitation/panhandling as needed; planning staff will work with the developer and local stakeholders during site plan, landscape and variance processes for the newly rezoned tract; the mobile-food proposal will return after council-directed drafting and a possible public workshop focused on harbor policy. Project solicitations and event permits will proceed according to the procurement and permit timelines noted in council motions.

Council members generally relied on staff presentations and public testimony in their votes; no member-level roll-call tallies with names were recorded in the public transcript for most motions. The meeting included an executive-session item on legal advice about certain harbor leases before adjourning.