An inflexible code puts small landlord’s business at risk
Photo by city of Austin
Monday, March 28, 2022 by Jonathan Lee
Prospective salon tenants have been knocking on the door of Stephen Straus’ charming house-turned-office at 3402 Kerbey Lane for months, only to be turned away because of the city’s rigid land development rules.
Though a salon would be an ideal tenant for Straus, the property’s Neighborhood Office (NO) zoning doesn’t allow personal services use, which is the category salons fall under. In response, Straus has forked over thousands in fees to the city – not to mention money for a civil engineer – to rezone the property to General Office (GO), which does allow salons.
Straus…
