El Paso’s City Council will hear an agenda item this week on a large tract of land in Northeast El Paso that could potentially bring a sizeable shopping center to the area. The developer is seeking to change the zoning to commercial to allow for retail and office uses.
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| The northern portion of the retail development in Northeast El Paso will have higher density buildings, along US-54. (City of El Paso) |
The property, located on the southeast corner of US-54 and McCombs Street, sits on 35 acres of undeveloped land and is adjacent to the Northeast Regional Park. The site plan included in the rezoning application shows several retail and office buildings of various sizes in a mostly traditional suburban shopping center layout.
None of the buildings include any possible tenant names, though the largest building is labeled as “Superstore.” Some of the buildings labeled as “Retail” may in fact be used for restaurant space. The site plan will also most likely see changes as eventual groundbreaking nears.
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| The site plan shows lower density retail buildings near the neighborhood to the south. (City of El Paso) |
The property is actually made up of two parcels, the smaller of which will be zoned as C-2 (Commercial), a lower density zoning due to the adjacent neighborhood to the south. The larger parcel is seeking C-3 zoning along US-54.
The City received on letter in opposition to the application, from residents in the nearby neighborhood who are afraid the shopping center will result in increased traffic and crime.
EP Plaza Partners is listed as the property owner, though the site plan was prepared for Mimco, Inc., the large shopping center operator. City Council will consider the rezoning application at its May 20, 2014 meeting.