The backstory
According to city documents, the recommended amendment is in response to a request from District 4 council member Charles Lauersdorf. The proposed change also comes on the heels of a recent Keller ISD decision to purchase 2.2 acres of land adjacent to Basswood Elementary—located within the Fort Worth city limits—to prevent the construction of an extended-stay motel at the location.
The details
The zoning ordinance requires a planned development district for the land use “hotel, motel or inn” to be located within 1,000 feet of any one- or two-family residential district, where schools are often located.
If amended, city documents state section 5.116 of Fort Worth’s zoning ordinance would require a planned development district designation for a new hotel, motel or inn to be allowed to be located within 1,000 feet of any public or private, primary or secondary school up through 12th grade.
Should the amendment pass, city documents state existing hotels, motels and inns within 1,000 feet of schools would become nonconforming unless they are subject to one of the exempted districts, which include:
- The H central business district
- Mixed-use and form-based districts where hotels are allowed from the 1,000-foot distance requirement