The Cedar Park City Council on June 28 adopted uniform building standards on big-box retail projects larger than 75,000 square feet.

City staff and the Cedar Park Planning and Zoning Commission have collectively spent five months drafting the standards, Planning Director Rawls Howard said.

The guidelines prevent warehouse-style buildings with no architectural character, Howard said at a June 14 public hearing. The standards also require property owners to maintain vacant large-scale retail buildings and build new structures in a way to allow redevelopment if their original uses fail.

Owners of existing big-box structures that go vacant would also be required to abide by new standards to maintain the properties, he said.

The guidelines also increase landscape standards and improve the appearance of building entrances. In addition, at least 30 percent of parking spaces would have to be located on the sides or behind the main structure. Also, among other requirements, the developer would need to abide by at least five of nine specific facade design styles.