Developers of the proposed Grapevine Terrace Apartments hit a major roadblock Tuesday night.

Following a recommendation from the city's Planning and Zoning Commission, the council voted to deny their plan to build a 278-unit, four-story apartment complex west of Grapevine Mills mall.

Commission Chairman Larry Oliver told council members that he and the other members decided the proposal was not the best use of the property.

"It exceeded some of the requirements by six units per acre," he said. "They didn't reduce the size of the front units to get those down...we don't believe it should be four stories in the front. And we just didn't think they'd done enough to convince us."

Developers submitted applications for a zone change, conditional use permit and planned development overlay variances. Most significantly, neither the four-story plan or the high density counts met Grapevine ordinances.

David Kirsch, an architect for the project, told the council and commission that the building was designed as four stories to make the cost of elevators feasible. The additional level of units, of course, adds to the density.

"If we don't do the four story, then it is very hard for us to justify the expense of the elevators on these buildings," he said. "And then all of a sudden we don't have this uniformity of accessibility to everyone."

Now developers will have to redesign the site to be significantly different from what was submitted is they want to break ground on a project anytime soon, said Ron Stombaugh, the city's planning and development manager.

"There is a one-year moratorium or cooling off period for the exact same request, but if they significantly modify it, then they can come back to the Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council," he said.

This week's proposal was, in fact, a modification on earlier plans for the site, which included a mid-rise building of condominiums.