Kennedale Proposes Massive Changes in New Comprehensive Plan Eliminating all Industrial Businesses on the South Side of Town

    KENNEDALE, TX, July 31, 2024 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Kennedale Alliance of Business Owners (KABO) has reviewed the recently released comprehensive zoning plan and is appalled to see that the city plans to change virtually all industrial uses to commercial uses over the next decade.

The city formed a committee some months back to review the existing comprehensive land plan, which is required under state law to be revisited every 10 years. The old plan showed most of South Kennedale along the parkway to be industrial, which was consistent with all the uses in that area.

According to the consulting firm that authored the proposed plan, the committee was comprised of "community members with various experiences and roles including local leaders and elected and appointed officials." The new plan produced by the firm with input from the committee proposes to change all industrial uses along the southern portion of the Parkway to commercial. "While parts of the proposed plan appear to reflect opinions of committee members, there are concerns that the committee process was not entirely inclusive of all views shared, particularly those of the business community," said Joe Palmer, Executive Director of the Kennedale Alliance of Business Owners.

Palmer says this is evidenced by the fact that at least one member of the committee quit after two meetings because, according to one member, "the committee had been formed and spoon-fed everything City management wanted, and the committee was nothing but a charade to make it look like citizens had input." Specifically, when the participant objected to all the anti-business planning embodied in the proposed plan, his concerns were ignored. "It is clear in the final results that many of the comments did not come from citizens, as none of the survey questions ask respondents to specify things they wanted built by the city without any regard for cost," said Palmer, citing the inclusion of bike lanes, a massive indoor recreation facility and the stated intent to discourage personal vehicle use. The city has no business trying to use zoning and a heavy hand to influence the economics of commerce and remake a whole section of town that has a robust industrial presence," he added.

The report states that Kennedale envisions itself as an "urban hub" (page 81), despite the introduction stating that Kennedale residents and the steering committee want to maintain its "small-town atmosphere," yet another example of an influence on the proposal that is contradictory to the vision expressed by the citizens. Another goal was a community design intended to discourage the use of personal vehicles, which seems counterintuitive along Kennedale Parkway, which is five lanes.

The report predicts a reduction of industry presence along with the contributions to the tax base from 38% to just over 3%. The report fails to propose where the new taxes will come from to offset all the ad-valorem and other taxes lost by elimination of the industrial businesses. In the past, the city has suggested that it wants to see the south part of the city redeveloped. In this plan, the city even suggests a massive indoor recreation facility, which is clearly not compatible with the industrial users on the south part of town that are not going to close, such as Bloxom's.

KABO believes that the citizens want less debt and more development, along with improved performance from the city on basic maintenance issues. And it makes sense to encourage more commercial development on the north side of the city, while leaving the industrial businesses with their jobs and taxes in place. KABO does not believe commercial and retail will ever be viable uses in the southern corridor in Kennedale. The city should not try to eliminate all the industrial users in the hopes that more retail and commercial will come. It's clear nationwide that there is significant pressure on retail, and the northern part of the city has been slow to attract enough commercial and retail to occupy all the vacant property there. Eliminating the users on the southside will only create less employment and taxes.

The industrial users on the south side of town have not been notified of these proposed changes. The city would say for the proposed hearings that they were publicly posted, but everyone knows that no one should be expected to go to the city website each week and check what is on the agenda. These changes will affect the livelihood of many of the landowners and tenants in south Kennedale. These changes will also stifle development as the legal nonconforming businesses will not be able to expand or add to their footprint or, in some cases, even get permits to improve. As business owners age and prepare to sell their business, the new owners will find difficulty in getting a certificate of occupancy when the property is zoned industrial, and the city wants it to be commercial.

In the meeting five years ago in which the city illegally changed the zoning for a city-owned piece of property from industrial to commercial allowing an event center to open, the then City Manager confirmed at the hearing that the city wanted to downzone all that area to commercial. Speed Fab-Crete, which started at this location in 1951, has made large Investments in the site, which would no longer be allowed if the zoning is changed to commercial. With more than 100 employees and continuous growth, their business will be stifled. KABO believes current city management would like to see the Speed Fab-Crete site vacant so that it could be redeveloped into some commercial use. KABO believes that would be devastating to the city.

There are large tracts of land in the southern areas surrounded by heavy industrial users, including the txdot facility, which stores environmental waste. These large tracts of land are ideal for development into multi-tenant office-warehouse, manufacturing, and distribution centers. All these uses require industrial zoning. The city should be focused on bringing investment from the industrial uses to this area; there simply is no need for commercial and retail, and no appetite for that investment, especially since the north side of the city is still developing.

It's important to note that a comprehensive plan does not change zoning; it only indicates the zoning the city wants, and in most cases, changes to the property's use that involve zoning require that the zoning conform to the comprehensive plan. Put simply, it's what the city wants to happen over the next ten years.

KABO encourages all business operators and property owners in the areas affected to speak at the upcoming public hearing on Tuesday, August 20 at City Hall, or send a letter opposing these changes in the comprehensive master plan.

About Kennedale Alliance of Business Owners
KABO's mission is to give members of Kennedale's business community and people who live and work in Kennedale an advocate in dealing with the city and to keep businesses informed about issues that affect them. Anyone who owns or works for a business in Kennedale is eligible to join. Dues are $20 annually and membership is confidential. To inquire about membership or KABO's mission, contact Executive Director Joe Palmer at (682) 774-5167 or by email at [email protected]. Visit the group's Facebook at Kennedale Alliance of Business Owners.

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