Over 450 new residences have the green light to be built close to the intersection of Hwy. 35 and Bailey Road.
At its March 28 regular meeting, Pearland City Council in a 4-3 vote approved the second reading of rezoning from heavy industrial to planned development district on property bounded by Hwy. 35, the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad, and both north and south of Bailey Road.
“Most of that area out there we have been hoping for a long time that we have something come to pass so we can use it for industrial, but it has not done that,” Council Member Woody Owens said. “I think this will be a good development here, and we only got so much land left in the city.”
City Council also unanimously approved two different first readings of ordinances coinciding with the planned development. The first was making a change to the city’s thoroughfare plan, which is a guide the city uses when making decisions regarding existing and future roadways. The amendment was to remove the future western extension of Industrial Drive from the plan.
City Council also officially changed the future land use map, which is a guide used by the city in making decisions regarding zoning, of the land from industrial to residential to accommodate the development.
LJA Engineering, the developer of the project, is waiting for the approval of both second readings regarding amendments to the city's thoroughfare and future land use map before taking any additional steps, LJA Engineering Project Manager Katy Harris told Community Impact Newspaper in an email.
Pearland City Council at its Jan. 10 regular meeting approved in a 4-3 vote the first reading of a zoning change for the development. Pearland Mayor Kevin Cole was the deciding vote in favor of the ordinance’s passing because Council Member Adrian Hernandez was absent from the meeting. Hernandez voted in favor of the development March 28.
“This has been contentious throughout,” Council Member Alex Kamkar said. “There [are] not seven people who agree with this. There [are] not seven people on the other side that think it is all bad.”
City staff, through their reports to council members for the first and second readings of the ordinances, were against the rezoning of the land for the planned development.
The planning and zoning commission in a 3-2 vote supported recommending the change to council when it was first presented in December, Kamkar pointed out at the meeting.
The planned residential development was originally proposed to include 260 single-family units and 100 townhomes. Since then, the development was changed to include 455 total, including 150 townhomes and 305 residential units. The development also includes several trails and local parks as amenities to the property.
Additionally, changes to the development included moving the detention ponds to the west side of the property to serve as additional buffer and removing a planned recreation center that was expected to be in the middle of the development, according to agenda documents. The development will have two entrances with signage at each along Hwy. 35 and Bailey Road.
Concerns brought up by council members who voted against the development included removing industrial land in the city, which brings significant revenue to the city based on taxes, going against the city’s zoning and land use planning documents, and additional traffic it will bring to the area.
The land has been vacant for several decades, according to agenda documents.
“This will give us an opportunity to get more revenue in the city,” Owens said. “To have a good development, something positive to take place, I think after 48 years if nothing has happened, I don’t think it is going to happen.”
