Public hearing on guidelines set for Feb. 5

QUINCY - The retail moratorium in Quincy is expected to come to an end soon.

At the Tuesday night Quincy City Council meeting, Building Official Carl Worley said the planning commission completed guidelines for large retail businesses to build within the city.

Before guidelines for large scale retail businesses are adopted, the council must schedule a public hearing.

The public hearing is set for Feb. 5, at 7 p.m., where citizens are given the opportunity to provide public testimony concerning the issue.

Quincy established the retail moratorium last year to prevent large-scale businesses from building their stores within the city without proper guidelines. The council worried there would be large empty buildings left behind from retail stores. According to the council the large buildings could stay vacant and disrupt the uniform look of their business area.

The guidelines concern how the building is built so it is available for other uses if the retailer leaves the building.

According to the guidelines, a large retail store refers to a building exceeding 40,000 square feet.

The guidelines stipulate the building should be visually appealing and consistent with the city's identity and history. Parking lots should be constructed in a manner allowing easy access to all entry points of the building and pedestrian walkways are to be defined.

According to the guidelines, retail establishments are required to provide at least two of the following: a patio/seating area, a pedestrian plaza with benches, a transportation center, a window-shopping walkway, an outdoor playground area, a kiosk, a water feature, a clock tower or some other focal feature.

The guidelines also define acceptable lighting to be used for safety and security reasons but not to impact nearby properties. Many other guidelines are included in the proposal to be discussed in February.