The Planning and Zoning Commission in Orange discussed restrictions for storage containers during an hour long workshop on Tuesday. The commission’s recommendations will go to the City Council later this month.
Orange Resident Steve Maddox works with Right Move Storage at 2525 Interstate 10 in Orange. Maddox informed the Planning and Zoning Commission that the business’s owners are considering selling the business. There are Conex containers on the property which are in violation of city ordinances currently, but the prospective owners would like to have the ordinance changed.
The city ordinance governing storage containers requires an eight-foot high opaque fence to surround the area where the containers are located. Maddox indicated the fence on the property does not meet those requirements being only six and a half feet high topped with barbed wire above the opaque portion of the barrier.
There are over a hundred Conex storage containers in the City of Orange which are in violation of municipal ordinances. Denise Ledet on the Planning and Zoning Commission said the commission needs to start narrowing the gap between compliance and violation of the ordinance.
Ledet particularly spoke to the situation at the storage facility on Interstate 10. “I think we should push for things to be in compliance, it’s pointless if we’re going to let stuff be out of compliance and we’re going to sit here and just talk about it. I believe that whether we grandfather it in or not it should be with the understanding that a fence that is eight-feet tall and in compliance is going to be put up,” Ledet commented.
Planning Director Kelvin Knauf stated a draft ordinance will be prepared for the Orange City Council’s consideration at its next meeting. Knauf believes the proposed ordinance would open up the use of these type of storage containers slightly especially for storage type businesses that could rent the use of them on site at the business.
-Dan Perrine, KOGT-
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