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Roman Forest City Council members are looking to narrow the areas in which developers can construct new commercial projects through the city’s upcoming zoning regulations.
The details
Council members discussed the potential zoning options during a June 9 workshop.
In September, council members approved a comprehensive plan for the city, which Roman Forest City Attorney Scott Francis said laid the groundwork for potential zoning regulations.
While the potential zoning regulations are still subject to change, Mayor Chris Parr expressed interest in restricting future commercial development to portions of Roman Forest Boulevard, Galaxy Boulevard and Appian Way.
“I’m just talking about parts of Appian Way and the corners of the major intersections of the boulevards,” Parr said. “Everything else needs to be residential.”
A closer look
Parr noted the three streets proposed for future commercial development are already home to commercial properties.
Council member Ricky Warwick suggested potentially zoning commercial development on one side of Appian Way and residential on the other side of the street.
Parr agreed with Warwick’s suggestion.
“People do move into neighborhoods sometimes because of conveniences,” Parr said. “I don’t know that I would stop all commercial. I think I would probably regulate it with good ordinances and good foresight to get out ahead of it.”
Some context
Francis noted the city’s comprehensive plan contained 10 potential land-use categories that could be used for zoning regulations, including:
Francis noted the zoning regulations could not prevent a particular business from coming to the city, but they could be used to restrict where specific businesses are allowed to exist within city limits.
What’s next
Parr said the city will likely hold at least one additional workshop to review final details on the proposed zoning regulations.
Once the plans are complete, Francis said the proposed zoning regulations would need to be brought to an open meeting to give residents and opportunity to provide input.
