North South Divide In Richardson

The north gets CityLine and Palisades Village. (I've had some reservations about some of the details of these developments (ahem), but I do like their scale and density.) The south gets a restaurant row (maybe), a 7-Eleven gas station and now (maybe) yet another drive-through fast food restaurant.

File No./Name: ZF 14-39 / Drive-thru Restaurant
Property Owner: Jason Ricks / BH Dallas Portfolio LLC
Applicant: Jarrod Blake
Location: 811 S. Central Expressway (See map on reverse side)
Current Zoning: C-M Commercial with special conditions
Request: A request for a change in zoning from C-M Commercial with special conditions to PD Planned Development to allow a restaurant with drive-through service and other site modifications on property located at 811 S. Central Expressway, the northeast corner of Central Expressway and Spring Valley Road.

Source: City of Richardson.

After the jump, what's going on here?

---

There's a bank now at 811 S. Central Expressway surrounded by a lot of parking lot. Across US 75 is the West Spring Valley Corridor redevelopment -- you know, the one with all the mixed-use promises. Just east on Spring Valley Rd is the DART station and more opportunity for mixed-use development.

If given a choice between a parking lot and a fast food restaurant, I'd go with the restaurant, but why should we limit ourselves? That property forms a key link in the chain from Coit Rd to the DART station. There might not be the greenfield development opportunities in south Richardson for a CityLine or Palisades, but do we have to make the redevelopment effort there even more difficult by approving a new obstacle to proper redevelopment? Why not encourage, assist, hold out for a comprehensive redevelopment of that whole lot consistent with the vision outlined in the West Spring Valley Corridor plan?

The city should reject this rezoning request. More important, the city should pick up the pace of redevelopment on the south side to balance the good things happening on the north.