Downtown faces zoning changes

City planners — in a preservation and beautification effort — have initiated Downtown Core zoning and added a Main Street overlay.

The area was previously zoned General Commercial, which allows for retail businesses with outdoor storage. General Commercial zoning also requires a set number of parking places for each storefront and building setbacks.

Carol Windham, director of planning and zoning, said the city had to create a district that eliminates some of the prior requirements and allows for mixed use, such as apartments.

"The downtown is intended as an urban mixed-use zone and for pedestrian traffic," Windham said.

Some restrictions that do apply within the Downtown Core are pet shops and veterinarians with outdoor holding pens, contractor shops and home supply stores — with outdoor storage.

"Outdoor storage can detract from the appeal of a downtown district," Windham said.

The Main Street overlay is a smaller portion of downtown with its own set of guidelines as they pertain to signage and building façades, because the largest part of the overlay is in the area of the planned downtown streetscape project.

According to Fallon Burns, Main Street manager, she and city planners selected to overlay the area because it has the highest concentration of historical buildings and the only developable property in the downtown.

"We want to protect the historic integrity of downtown and ensure only the highest quality construction," Burns said.

Some guidelines include: all storefronts must be at least 30 percent windows and no metal façades; and business and building owners are restricted from painting signs directly on buildings.

These guidelines and more are slated for discussion at the next catered Building Owners Luncheon at noon Friday at Kilgore City Hall