Last night Chico city leaders opted to further discuss considering re-zoning a long-vacant commercial property considered by many an eyesore.
At Park Avenue and 11th Street, the string of run-down, vacant businesses create a dead zone between Chico’s pedestrian-heavy downtown and more auto-centric area to the south.
A decade ago, officials envisioned creating a thriving beehive of apartments above small downstairs shops at the site, but that never happened. Last night, at the behest of the property’s owner, Vice Mayor Sean Morgan got the council to agree to discuss the possibility of re-zoning the property from mixed-use residential to commercial.
Morgan likened it to a slice of Detroit, and characterized its owner as a victim who had been stuck with land after a deal with the now-defunct Redevelopment Agency fell through.
In other council action, a proposal to sell two vacant adjacent homes to Habitat for Humanity of Butte County for demolition and reconstruction was approved unanimously.
Council members also voted to recommend that the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control approve the transfer of a full liquor license to a planned chicken wing-themed sports bar, as well as a permit for 1078 Gallery to sell beer.