Dallas City Hall on Wednesday, April 3, 2023, in Dallas. The city is considering an ordinance that would eliminate residents' ability to request amortization, which is a process for closing a business over time when it has a nonconforming zoning use and when it has an adverse effect on the community. Amortization has long been a tool for residents to fight for safety and quality of life in their neighborhoods, and it should be protected.
The amortization process has traditionally given cities the right to set a closure date well into the future and give businesses time to recoup or amortize their costs. SB 929 complicates that process by allowing owners or lessees of amortized property to be able to choose direct compensation from the city for those losses instead.
City Hall wants to take SB 929 one step further, preventing residents from petitioning for amortization out of fear that it could lead to heavy costs for taxpayers.That might be a reasonable fear. And the city attorney’s office has a responsibility to protect the city from such costs. But the rights of citizens need to be paramount here.The bar for putting a business into amortization is already high.
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