The Fate of Chrome-plating on Southcross

On June 23rd, the San Antonio Zoning Commision has denied the requested zoning change to the chome-plating facility located on the southeast side of East Southcross Boulevard near Roosevelt Avenue. The company involved in chrome-plating was seeking a zoning change to bring their business into compliance. Chrome-plating, a heavy industry requiring dangerous chemicals, will not be allowed in this area of San Antonio.

Following are excerpts from the city record of the Zoning Commission Hearing.

CASE NO: Z2010045

The subject property is located within the South Central Community Plan. The requested zoning change is inconsistent with the Future Land Use Plan, which designates the subject property as "Mixed Use". The requested zoning will require amending the plan to a "Heavy Industrial" land use designation.


Denial.

The subject property, located on the southeast side of East Southcross Boulevard approximately 450 feet west of Roosevelt Avenue, is 0.725 of an acre of a larger 2.59 acre tract. According to the Bexar County Appraisal District property details, the existing industrial structure measures approximately 20,160 square feet and was built in 1975. In a 1985 City-initiated zoning case, the subject property was rezoned from multiple zoning districts to “H B-3” Business Mission Historic District. Upon adoption of the 2001 Unified Development Code, the previous zoning district converted to "H C-3" General Commercial Mission Historic District. In a 2009 City-initiated zoning case, a portion of the subject property was included in the "MC-1" Roosevelt Avenue Metropolitan Corridor Overlay District. The remaining portions of the property are zoned "H I-1 AHOD" General Industrial Mission Historic Airport Hazard Overlay District (to the west of the subject area) and "H C-3 AHOD MC-1" (to the east of the subject area). Surrounding base zoning districts include "C-2" Commercial District, "C-3" and "I-1" to the north and west along Southcross Boulevard; with "C-2" to the south along Roosevelt. Surrounding properties also carry multiple overlay districts including "H" Mission Historic District, "AHOD" Airport Hazard Overlay District, "RIO-5" River Improvement Overlay District, and "MC-1" Roosevelt Avenue Metropolitan Corridor Overlay District. The applicant requests "I-2" Heavy Industrial District in an effort to bring the existing chrome-plating facility into compliance.

Staff finds the requested zoning inappropriate for the subject property. The "I-2" Heavy Industrial District is meant to accommodate uses that are highly hazardous, environmentally severe in character, or that generate high volumes of truck traffic. Due to their intense nature and potential negative impacts, "I-2" properties should include substantial buffering from surrounding non-industrial uses. Additionally, the "I-2" district and its uses should continue the orderly development and concentration of industrial and manufacturing uses at sites with acreage that is sufficient to maintain compatibility with surrounding uses. The subject property is a portion of a larger lot and includes only the area encompassing the existing structure, and is surrounded by a mix of residential, retail, and service uses. Landscape buffer requirements for the "I-2" district are significant when the property abuts any commercial, office, or residential
district; with required buffers ranging from 25 to 40 feet depending on the specific abutting zoning district. The subject property's configuration does not allow any buffering for surrounding properties. Should the requested zoning be approved, landscape buffer requirements would not be enforced unless new construction occurred on the subject
property.

Approval of the requested zoning would constitute "spot-zoning" as the nearby Roosevelt Corridor was recently the subject of a comprehensive rezoning case. Through City Council initiation, a three-mile section of Roosevelt Avenue was rezoned from intense commercial and industrial zoning districts to lower-intensity commercial, office, and residential
zoning districts in an effort to phase out non-contributing uses by reducing the intensity of allowed commercial uses and eliminating industrial zoning where it was in conflict with surrounding uses and the adopted land use plan. The requested "I-2" district is in direct conflict with the goals of the recent corridor rezoning.