A zoning case for a 3.8-acre site at the corner of Walnut Hill Lane and Betty Jane Lane has been delayed by the Dallas City Council until Sept. 23.
If approved, the zoning for the site would be changed from R-16A single family zoning (16,000-square-feet lots) to allow for 41 patio homes, the majority of which neighbors say would be three-story and reach 36 feet.
The area used to house a church. A portion of the former structure remains on the site, according to documents filed by the city, but the site is otherwise vacant.
The site was the subject of a similar zoning change request last year, which was voted down, and the developer has since reduced the number of houses proposed and “increased minimum lot size, and increased open space requirements,” according to the documents.
In a letter addressed to the mayor and city council that was shared on the website of the D13 Together coalition before the vote, resident John Wimberley said he was still concerned about the height and density of the proposed development.
“The proposal before the City Council now still calls for the vast majority of the proposed 41 homes to be 3-story on lots as small as 1,980sf, which is more than eight times the density allowed under its current R-16 zoning,” the letter said.
District 12 City Council member Cara Mendelsohn asked before the 10-3 vote to defer action whether the people who’d registered to speak on the topic would still have that opportunity if the agenda item were deferred.
“I think it’s just incredibly disrespectful for us to not let people speak after they’ve been waiting — I don’t know — four hours and I’d like to hear what they have to say” Mendelsohn said.
District 13 City Council member Gay Donnell Willis, who represents the district where the site is located, in response, said she was willing to hear from residents on the topic, but “there are some new possibilities that I would like to explore that I would love to share with the neighbors if they are able to be worked out” on the zoning case.
“If you came down here and you would like to speak tonight, that’s fine, but there could be further developments,” Willis added.
In a post on the Dallas City Council District 13 Facebook page Aug. 26, after the meeting, Willis and her staff shared that the developer is making changes to the plan proposed.
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