The overlay for over 11 acres—currently zoned for commercial and office—located behind an existing office development was unanimously denied with prejudice by council and the planning and zoning commission during the Nov. 21 joint meeting because of a large amount of neighbors’ opposition. If the proposal had been approved, a rezoning to allow for single-family residential development would have also taken place.
The big picture
Eason Maykus, president of Maykus Homes and Neighborhoods, said the proposed Grapevine Springs development would include 32 two-story homes. A retaining wall would also have been built in the area that borders an existing office park, and 4.4 acres of open space would have been located between some of the proposed townhome lots and residential streets.
Several council members and residents voiced concerns about the impact to trees, the overall density with the number of homes within the neighborhood, the use of private streets and privacy concerns. Because of the strong neighborhood opposition, a supermajority vote would have been needed to approve the development.
According to city documents, several proposed residential developments were previously denied in the 1990s. The proposed development would have also been bordered by the Dove Creek neighborhood to the north and Manor Oaks neighborhood to the west.
Dig deeper
Some council members also signaled their opposition because of a lack of changes made between the tabling of the development during the Oct. 17 meeting and the Nov. 21 hearing.
“I’m looking for something different and where you made changes to make me support it,” council member Leon Leal said. “It’s really hard for me to support it because I haven’t seen significant changes to try and help this community come together and support your project.”
Council member Duff O’Dell said she hoped Maykus and his team would consider a different way to develop the land.
With a denial with prejudice, the developer cannot return with the same proposal until at least one year later, but can bring back a different proposal.
Quote of note
“I’m hoping there’s something that you can come back with where everybody will be much happier,” O’Dell said.
