Celina City Council discussed possible zoning for dealerships at its meeting July 8. Council did not vote regarding the item.
The details
Dusty McAfee, Celina’s director of development services, said at the July 8 meeting that dealerships such as Chevy, Honda and GMC are actively looking to set up in Celina.
Currently, new auto sales are only allowed by right in Celina’s industrial zoning districts. Everywhere else, a dealership would need a specific use permit from the city or to be part of a planned development to operate, McAfee said.
A lot of dealerships are wanting to open in the city along the Dallas North Tollway.
“That is prime real estate in Celina,” McAfee said.
However, the planning and zoning commission’s feedback was that the land along the tollway should be preserved for higher value development.
Council expressed mixed feelings regarding land usage along the tollway. Mayor Ryan Tubbs and Council member Philip Ferguson said they’d be open to a dealership in this area, if the right project was proposed.
Others on council, including council members Brandon Grumbles and Andy Hopkins, agreed that this land should be reserved for higher-end development.
“They're asking for us to rezone this land,” Grumbles said. “Well, if we do that, then we're stuck with this land that's zoned automotive, and there's nothing we can do with it at that point.”
What else?
McAfee said council should take into account dealerships are not often visually pleasing but Celina’s design standards could offset this.
Dealerships can bring jobs to a community and are not uncommon along major regional roadways, he said. Dealerships can also be good partners to the community, McAfee said, sponsoring school and city events.
Sales tax is not paid on passenger vehicles, he said, but they can be collected on service parts that may be sold at dealerships.
Ultimately, City Council members said they’d need to see proposed dealership plans to make a decision on where they should be allowed in Celina.
