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Saginaw council approves rezoning withdrawal and tables broad zoning-use overhaul for more study
Summary
Council accepted a staff recommendation to withdraw two rezoning items tied to a Falcon development and voted to table indefinitely a comprehensive text amendment to the city's permitted-use table, citing legal questions and requests for more detailed maps and phased review.
The Saginaw City Council voted to approve the withdrawal of two previously filed rezoning items (4a and 4b) and later voted to table indefinitely a sweeping staff proposal to amend the city’s permitted-use table.
Maria, planning staff, told council the rezoning request from Falcon for property at 112 Spring Hollow Drive included a proposed land swap that would allow the driveway to be moved to McElroy, gift portions of the site to the neighborhood/HOA and reclassify other portions to match proposed industrial uses. Staff said the applicant previously sought a variance to remove a screening fence and was denied by the Board of Adjustment, so staff recommended withdrawal so the applicant can return with a planned-development (PD) application that would combine the rezoning and screening-fence request. Council approved the withdrawal; staff and the applicant will return to Planning & Zoning and to council with revised materials.
Later in the meeting Susie Victor Trivino, planning staff, walked council through a wide-ranging textual amendment to the permitted-use table that would change how the city classifies and permits many retail, commercial and industrial uses. Among the recommendations:
• Vehicle sales (auto auctions, new/used auto sales, motorcycle sales) would be changed to "not permissible" in some zones to preserve limited parcels for other uses.
• Auto rentals would be disallowed in neighborhood-commercial zones and allowed in community-commercial only with a specific-use permit (SUP).
• RV rentals and large RV storage would be generally restricted.
• Car washes and many auto-service uses would move toward SUP review in community-commercial areas rather than by-right allowances.
• Park-and-ride lots would remain permissible only on city facilities; off-premise parking would be permitted through an SUP in CC, city-facility, LI and HI to support redevelopment projects (staff referenced interest from DFW Plastics). Trivino noted ordinance "20 23 17" exists to prohibit certain on-premise parking but said the permitted-use table in the code was never updated to reflect that ordinance.
Council discussion focused on compatibility and clarity. Several members urged staff to separate "convenience stores with or without fuel" into distinct definitions so small neighborhood shops (bodegas) would not be conflated with gas stations; members also asked staff to add language that addresses electric-vehicle charging. A council member raised concerns that restricting certain parking or use allowances could hinder expanding employers. City attorney Brent said he had a legal concern and recommended more time to study the packet. A motion to table the entire package indefinitely passed.
What’s next: Staff will work with the city attorney and planning staff to refine language, provide zoning maps and clarify which parcels would become legal nonconforming; the rezoning items will return when the applicant files a PD application and Planning & Zoning completes its review.
