Landrum goes ahead with final readings for bike racks, planting in zoning district

LANDRUM — The city of Landrum now has an ordinance for bicycle parking and more flexibility on planting requirements for the C-1 zoning district.

The Landrum City Council met Tuesday and held a public hearing prior to approving the second and final readings of the ordinances. No one spoke during the public hearing.

Landrum currently has a bicycle rack at the Hare and the Hound restaurant downtown.

The new ordinance includes a plan for racks at the Landrum Depot and Museum; East Rutherford and Church streets intersection; the Landrum Library; Landrum City Hall; the Youth Association ball fields; Brookwood Park parking lot; the proposed new site for the Landrum Farmers Market; Landrum Middle School; O.P. Earle Elementary School; and the Northside Community Park.

Landrum Mayor Bob Briggs said the ordinances will add bicycle parking to certain public locations and will add options for people when they construct a new business.

The city’s street planting ordinance was amended to include more options for people.

“Council wants to encourage the beautification and use of street planting strips in the C-1 district, and this requires a change in the uses which can be included in such street planting strips,” states the city’s resolution to amend the ordinance.

The amended ordinance now states for street parking strips in the C-1 district, in all front setbacks, a strip not less than 6 feet in width shall be provided along the street line on the property, which shall be planted and maintained in grass with street trees or in shrub planting, including flower plantings, flower pots and urns and related decorative landscaping except bicycle parking spaces may occupy a portion of such area.

Signs shall not be erected in the strip except for traffic and regulatory signs.

Councilman John Carruth said the planting ordinance is just adding some verbiage.

“This is an existing ordinance,” Briggs said. “All we’re doing is giving more options.”

The ordinances were part of the city’s Envision Landrum plan, which, when first proposed, met criticism. The city council recently deleted some changes, including a new downtown mixed-use district, which would have meant the first floor of buildings would have to be retail.

Instead, the city directed its planning board to research how to encourage retail businesses in the downtown district.