Gonzales City Council approves five rezonings, tables pool management contract

The Gonzales City Council adopted five ordinances to amend the city planning and development map on Monday, approving rezonings for parcels at 3200 Burnside Avenue, a lot in the Philippe subdivision, a Coleman Roofing site on Robert Wilson Road, and two parcels in the Conway development.

The measures, filed as Ordinances 4255 through 4259, passed on roll-call votes after the council closed public hearings held earlier in the meeting. "We're just trying to clean up the zoning on this property that's already a portion of it that's zone C2," said Bo Booty of Centerline Engineering, who spoke for the applicant on the Burnside Avenue request. "I'd be happy to answer any questions y'all might have," he added.

Why it matters: The approved rezonings change official zoning designations for a mix of commercial and mixed-use parcels and will allow developers to move forward with planned office, warehouse and residential components. Jordan, a representative for Coleman Roofing, told the council the rezoning would permit an office with warehouse use on the Robert Wilson Road site. "We're just looking to get the property rezoned from C1 to C2 in order to be able to build our office with warehouse use available to it," Jordan said.

The largest of the approved measures affects roughly 20 acres at the front of the Conway development; Blake Brinson, representing STO Group, said the proposal would split the acreage into approximately 17.5 acres of R3M25 and about 2.5 acres of B1 to allow mixed-use development and commercial frontage. "We think it'll create more value for the community, create more value for the city in terms of tax dollars," Brinson said.

Votes at a glance: The council recorded affirmative roll-call votes to adopt Ordinances 4255–4259. (Ordinance 4255: adopted, roll-call 4–0; Ordinance 4256: adopted, unanimous; Ordinance 4257: adopted, roll-call 3–0; Ordinance 4258: adopted, unanimous; Ordinance 4259: adopted, roll-call 3–0.) The meeting also included routine approvals and one notable procedural action: the council tabled the pool management agreement for Cellar Aquatics after a member requested more time to compare the proposed contract to the prior agreement.

Other business: Council approved minutes of the April 14, 2025 meeting and granted special-event permits for multiple Cinco de Mayo celebrations (including an event at 1210 North Airline Highway and another at Highway 30 on May 5, 2025) and a Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center community health event at Geminia Park on Oct. 4, 2025. The council also approved a cooperative endeavor agreement formalizing a previously approved $5,000 allocation to the Sha Nelson Foundation.

Contract discussion and tabling: Staff described the pool management contract as "a pretty dense contract" and offered two options: table to allow comparative review against the old contract or approve subject to legal review. Councilmember Terry moved to table the item and the motion carried on roll call (Yes 3, No 1). "I'd like to see the old contract first," Terry said during the discussion.

Department reports: Public Works reported routine streets, drainage and sewer maintenance, completion of a water-rehab job on North Cedar Avenue and that April water samples passed Department of Health testing. Engineering staff said a DOTD sidewalk-grant application for Kennedy Heights is due in mid-May and that survey comments on the Our Lady of the Lake Connector re-subdivision map have been returned, which should enable property dedication and project advancement.

What’s next: The pool management agreement will return to a future agenda after staff compiles comparative materials on the prior contract. Other introduced ordinances (employee leave policy and a capital outlay amendment for a tractor and boom attachment) were presented for introduction only and were not voted on at the meeting.