Need a plan: Truesdale steps toward zoning code creation

Adam Rollins, Staff Writer
Posted 8/23/22

The city of Truesdale is preparing to establish planning and zoning laws to regulate new property development in the small, but growing town.

City leaders say new regulations are needed so that …

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Need a plan: Truesdale steps toward zoning code creation

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The city of Truesdale is preparing to establish planning and zoning laws to regulate new property development in the small, but growing town.

City leaders say new regulations are needed so that residents and their representatives can have a greater say in what types of developments are allowed, and where they’re allowed.

“We’re definitely overdue for this,” said Mayor Chris Watson during a recent discussion of the topic. “It’s definitely something that’s going to help the city, and its residents and business owners, to have a say and have a better idea of what’s going on.”

Currently, Truesdale has limited ability to regulate development through building construction codes and business permits. But planning and zoning laws go further, allowing a city to more strictly regulate what types of businesses or activities are permitted in different areas.

“Planning and zoning” is the blanket term for city and county ordinances that restrict how different pieces of property are used. A local government assigns different “zone” labels to every piece of property, and then sets the rules for what kinds of buildings, businesses, and activities are allowed in each type of zone.

Typical examples of zoning designations include industrial, commercial, single-family residential and multi-family residential zones, but a variety of more specific designations are common as well.

Ideally, zoning laws prevent disorderly developments where conflicting property uses butt up against each other. For example, most zoning codes wouldn’t allow a bar or a construction business in the middle of a neighborhood, but they might allow a day care.

Local governments that currently have planning and zoning ordinances include Warren County, Warrenton, Wright City, Innsbrook and Foristell. The county government’s zoning code only applies to unincorporated areas, which means that at the moment, Truesdale is like an oasis of minimal land use regulations.

City leaders say the days of that minimal regulation being a good thing are coming to an end as more builders and businesses look to develop land in Truesdale, bringing the risk of future conflicts between neighboring landowners.

As an example of incoming development, city leaders have pointed to two projects along Veterans Memorial Parkway, a paintball field and a new subdivision. Those projects border one Truesdale neighborhood, Heritage Hills. If current residents had a serious problem with the new developments, the city might not have been able to prevent those projects, Mayor Watson said both projects were well received.

Truesdale is enlisting Boonslick Regional Planning Commission to help create the city’s zoning laws. BRPC Executive Director Chad Eggen laid out the steps the city needs to go through.

“The first thing is, you need to create an ordinance to have a planning and zoning commission, as well as selecting members to serve on that board,” Eggen said. The commission would be a volunteer citizen board that helps advise planning and zoning decisions.

Eggen said Truesdale will also need to develop a comprehensive plan laying out the city’s intentions for current and future zoning for every piece of property.

“When you lay it out and have an intended use for an area, people understand that. It’s very transparent,” Eggen commented. “It’s a blueprint for your growth. You want development to go in certain areas.”

Eggen estimated that the process to fully establish planning and zoning laws would take about 10 months.

Truesdale Board of Aldermen, Planning and Zoning

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