A rezoning request considered by Amarillo City Council was delayed during a meeting earlier this month. The request, made by Marcelino Alvarado and his son with the same name, was to rezone 710 North Mirror, which is currently an empty lot zoned for apartments, to allow the construction of a new and used auto dealership.
While the planning and zoning board opposed the rezoning, citing residential properties to the north and east as well as an apartment complex to the west, the father and son team presented a petition to the council signed by adjacent property owners expressing support. It was also noted that there is existing industrial zoned property directly to the south, as well as a storage facility with the same form of zoning as requested just behind the apartment buildings to the west of the property. Brady Kendrick, presenting the findings of the planning and zoning board, admitted that none of the property owners who were given a required notice of the proposal objected.
The council, however, remained hesitant. While councilman Cole Stanley expressed support for the rezoning, worries expressed by other council members regarding the potential for future heavier use of the property eventually resulted in the item being tabled. The council expressed their desire to work with the father and son team to find a way to rezone the lot in a way which would prevent more intensive use in the future. In particular, council members expressed concern about the property hypothetically being used as a truck stop.
The son of the father-son team, speaking to the Amarillo Pioneer, noted his disagreements with the delay. Specifically, he felt that worries about more intensive usage were not justified, stating that “we specifically bought that property to expand our business, not to abandon it in a couple of years.” Regarding concerns about it being used as a truck stop, he said “I just don’t see that it’s the right place for a truck stop.”
When asked about how the delay in the council making a decision could impact their plans, Alvarado said “it will definitely delay us a little bit because we want to know if we’re going to be able to build something there.”
The item is not up for discussion on the agenda for tomorrow’s city council meeting. To read about what is on the agenda, read our full story summarizing it here.