The Orange Planning and Zoning Commission Tuesday agreed to make 1,160 acres of the newly annexed International Paper plant as industrial. Planning Director Kelvin Knauf told the commission new additions to the city automatically are made low-density residential and then changed. He said all the land is used as industrial.
International Paper last year requested to be annexed into Orange in what was called a “friendly annexation.”
In other business, the commission agreed to replat five lots–2413, 2415,2417, 2419 and other 2421– on the west side of 16th Street. The lots were originally designed for single houses.
Knauf said the lots now are a commercial strip center known as Putnam Plaza. The center has two restaurants, a convenience store and the Texas Workforce office. He said the owner wanted to have the land recorded as one plat.
In other action, the commission approved an updated the city code for sign regulations. The commission had spent several hours in workshops in the past months reviewing possible changes. The changes also have new guidelines for using beacons or spotlights.
The approved code renames “temporary event signs” to “promotional signs.” The change is to avoid confusion with the newly-created “exhibition signs” for promoting a “cultural or performing exhibition, event or performance of a historic, cultural or artistic nature such as plays, concerts and museum exhibits.”
Another new classification is “special event signs” for community-wide events or activities “sponsored by, on or behalf of a unit of local government, an agency of the State of Texas, an accredited institution of higher learning, a charitable organization or a not-for-profit organization such as Bassmasters and boat races.”
The sign ordinances make blade signs, banners, balloons, feather flags, inflatables, air dancers, inflatable tubes and pennants to the category of promotional signs.
Members of the Planning and Zoning Commission who attended were Chair Cullin Smith, Michael Smith, Jack Moore Sr., Joe Love and Joe Pledger. All of the decisions had unanimous votes.
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