Month: February 2021

Large Area Rezoning (LAR) 

In  2017 and 2018, Councilman Trevino initiated a Council Consideration Request (CCR) to direct staff to  “rezone, with plan amendments where necessary, the following properties in collaboration with property owners and the community to make zoning consistent with the current uses of the property or the land use plan, where appropriate: […]   for the neighborhoods of Dellview, River Road, Monte Vista, Beacon Hill, Alta Vista, and West End Hope in Action neighborhoods. Dellview and River Road have completed their rezoning and their LAR was adopted by Council. Monte Vista’s LAR was approved by the Zoning Commission and goes to City Council soon. Alta Vista and Beacon Hill are beginning their process.  

In 2019, District 2 Council member Jada-Andrews filed a CCR for the intersection of intersections of Lamar Street and N.Hackberry Street, and Nolan and N. Pine Street.  

In 2020, District 5 Council member, Shirley Gonzales, filed a CCR  for a large area rezoning for some Westside neighborhoods.(to review and rezone properties generally bound. by Castorville Road, U.S. 90 and S.W. 19th Street)

“Throughout the past few decades, many areas of the center city have had ongoing concerns regarding zoning inconsistencies. These inconsistencies were the result of the code conversion from the “old” zoning code, which utilized an A-J tiered system of zoning, to the new system we use today. While some of these changes are subtle, given new development patterns in the urban core, these subtle differences are causing large impacts throughout our neighborhoods. Some of these impacts include the inability for residents to pull permits in their neighborhoods because their use does not match their zoning, incompatible development within our NCDs and Historic Districts, and placing our city staff, commissions, and City Council in difficult positions regarding zoning changes which are contradictory in nature.“ (Trevino, 2017 CCR)

So what does this mean? 
If your neighborhood has a large area of inconsistent zoning (zoning that is not compatible with its land use) you may qualify for a large area rezoning. The LAR must be requested by your council member through a CCR.  No property’s zoning will be changed without the permission of the property owner. But there are several reasons a property-owner might welcome a change of zoning and compatible zoning is good for the well-being of our communities. 

Contact Cat Hernandez at Developmental Services Department for more information.

CCRs: 
D1 Council member Roberto Trevino: Dellview  and  near north and west neighborhoods
D5  Council member Shirley Gonzalez: Westside neighborhoods
D2 Council member Jada Andrews-Sullivan: Intersections of Lamar Street and N. Hackberry Street and Nolan and N. Pine Street.

February 20, 2021

Dear Mayor,

CPS has a presentation on their website wherein they reveal their growth strategies through 2021 and beyond. After studying that presentation, it is clear that a substantial portion of their strategy for managing growth of demand is “Demand Response”, which on the last page is revealed to be a code word for “curtailment”, which is another code word for blackouts. You can study the presentation yourself, it’s at…..https://www.cpsenergy.com/content/dam/corporate/en/Documents/Trustees/BOT-Presentations/2019-03-25%20-%20Generation%20Update.PDF

In an interview with KTSA on February 15^th, CPS Energy President and CEO Paula Gold-Williams said she is “absolutely sorry.” I guess she goofed or made a small mistake somewhere. That interview can be found on the web at, https://www.ktsa.com/cps-energy-on-rotating-outages-were-absolutely-sorry-that-this-is-happening/

In the interview, Gold-Williams reveals that CPS Energy has the “electrical capacity of 7,000 megawatts” of power and she further reveals that the current freeze has raised demand to “around 5,000 to 5,400 megawatts”. That’s really good news. San Antonio does not have to draw on the Texas grid to supply ALL of the demand for electricity in the CPS Energy service area. Except, they made a small error which she explains, “we actually had thought that the cold weather was behind us”.

That error has caused deaths. Pets and people have died of exposure, which is polite speak for “froze to death”. That error has caused MILLIONS of dollars of property damage. That was one hell of an error.

How does a person keep their job when they make that kind of mistake? In fact, how do they stay out of prison when they fail so spectacularly? How can I get a cushy job like that?

SAN ANTONIO WAS CAPABLE OF MEETING ITS OWN NEEDS DURING THIS TEXAS FREEZE EXCEPT THAT THE PEOPLE THAT WE HIRED TO DO THE PLANNING FOR OUR ELECTRICAL SYSTEM GOOFED UP. How is that not criminal?

The following are possible actions that the City might take to make sure this crises does not happen again:

1. Terminate the top 5 executives at CPS Energy TODAY. Also terminate the Chairman of the Board of Directors TODAY.
2. Form an investigative group made up as follows and require them to grill every executive, board member and department manager at CPS energy to determine why and how CPS energy failed to provide for it’s customer’s needs:
   1. 5 City Council Members
   2. 5 Citizens at large, preferably neighborhood leaders.
   3. 5 SAPD Officers or Fire Fighters
   4. 5 Middle managers in the CPS System
3. Change the Mission Statement of CPS Energy to include the following, “Demand Response or blackouts are not any part of a solution to San Antonio’s energy demand growth. CPS Energy’s primary duty is to plan for, prepare for and provide for the Electrical Demand of CPS Energy’s consumers”
4. Clearly post on the CPS Energy home web page a graph that shows the real time Capacity and Demand (without DR, Curtailments or blackouts) on a 24 hour timeline.
5. Require CPS energy to finance repairs for it’s consumer’s properties for damage they claim was caused by CPS’s failure to provide Electrical service, at a interest rate of 0% with a repayment term of not less than 10 years.

Mayor, you have been presented with the opportunity to show leadership and to step up and deal with a crisis and you will be judged by how you manage the current San Antonio Freeze crisis. Please take decisive action quickly.

Respectfully,

Everette Ives

. 

This op-ed was published originally in the Express News: Commentary: Tree exception has become the rule” (February 9, 2021) by Cynthia Spielman and Cosima Colvin, Steering Committee members of the Tier One Neighborhood Coalition.

Re: “Killing Trees,” by Brian Chasnoff, Front Page, Jan. 24

The fact that in every instance, Michael Shannon and the city of San Antonio’s Development Services Department waived the tree ordinance to make exceptions for developer requests is unsurprising to anyone working on neighborhood issues.

An “arbitrary approach to the codes” is something people living in downtown neighborhoods feel they are faced with almost every time a developer wants a zoning change or variance for a project, no matter how incompatible or against the “spirit of the ordinance.” When every case is treated as an exception, the exception becomes the rule.

Residents have seen, repeatedly, how Development Services works with the development community to discard the standards in the Unified Development Code to preserve our natural and built environments. Even in neighborhoods “protected” by a zoning overlay (historic districts or neighborhood conservation districts), Development Services staff has helped developers overbuild lots to maximize profits.

Time after time, Development Services staff approves plans, including exceptions to legal ordinances, that continue to erode our neighborhoods through their interpretations of code. We ask ourselves, much like Debbie Reid, a former city arborist quoted in the article, why have ordinances or standards if every exception is approved? Like the tree ordinance, these standards have become a façade of protection.

Residents work tirelessly to get Development Services to adhere to the ordinances on the books. This places undue burden on the people of this city, especially those with the fewest resources. Meanwhile, the development community is almost always included in discussions regarding new ordinances that will affect it and all too often influences how those ordinances are written.

We mistakenly think Development Services works for residents when actually it serves developers, who are their customers. It is funded by permits and developer fees. We naively expect Development Services to regulate the very entities on whose success it depends.

When the city does try to develop and implement policies that are more community-friendly, it has the challenge of defending those measures against a state government that weighs in on the side of developer. When you have someone like state Sen. Roland Gutierrez sitting within that house of power maneuvering for an exception, it becomes a daunting task indeed to say, “No.”

It should be the job of the city to strike a balance that benefits developers and residents. When the city stands behind and enforces its ordinances, exhibiting a culture of consistency rather than leniency, everyone knows the rules and can plan accordingly. Developments are more likely to be compatible with the neighborhood and contribute to its revitalization and stability.

We appreciate Chasnoff and Reid for bringing this issue into the light, and we appreciate the hard work of neighborhood leaders who, without the benefit of attorneys and staff, work tirelessly to hold developers and the city to account. We hope Chasnoff continues investigating other areas where Development Services is failing to hold developers accountable to the laws that City Council has passed.

Cynthia Spielman and Cosima Colvin sit on the steering committee of the Tier One Neighborhood Coalition.