Some neighboring residents say they remain concerned about the height and density of a controversial tower project proposed for the southwest corner of Preston Road and Royal Lane as negotiations continue.
Plans from developer Leland Burk include building a hotel/residential tower up to 240 feet, or about 19 stories, another residential tower up to 210 feet, or about 18 stories, and an office building up to 190 feet. The maximum structure height allowed by the area’s current zoning is 54 feet.
District 13 Dallas City Councilmember Gay Donnell Willis at the Oct. 14 city council meeting moved to defer a vote on the case until Nov. 10. It’s the second time a city council hearing on the project had been delayed since the city plan commission OK’d the rezoning on Aug. 6.
“Negotiations are not complete on this project,” Willis said when she called for the delay.
Neighbors have expressed concerns about the height proposed and potential traffic impacts. Willis cited traffic as neighbors’ top concern when she announced that she planned to seek a deferral.
“Additional traffic improvements will reduce wait times at the lights and ensure an improved flow of vehicles. I am pushing for a solution that extends beyond the immediate intersection and encompasses more of the east and westbound traffic to make a greater overall impact on traffic flow,” she said. “The engineers at Kimley-Horn need additional time to recommend meaningful and effective plans to do this.”
Neighbor Richard Cox said at the Oct. 14 meeting that residents’ concerns were more complex. They stemmed from the project’s density and scale, not simply the amount of traffic associated with it.
“A 19-story tower and an 18-story apartment complex simply do not belong at Preston and Royal,” he said. “While we appreciate the councilmember’s focus on traffic, traffic is only a symptom of a much larger problem.”
Other residents who spoke at the Aug. 6 city plan commission meeting expressed optimism about the project’s potential additional housing options.
“As aging families start to downsize from those large homes, they need alternative housing, and this project is going to provide some additional resources on housing to fulfill that need,” Steven McCoy said. “But also (the project will bring) the retail, the walkable retail and the restaurants that all the surrounding areas need (to) be more of a positive light in bringing energy back to Preston Hollow.”
Burk was also in attendance at the city plan commission meeting. He said he and his team had made it a priority to meet with residents and take their concerns into account.
Willis’ Oct. 9 announcement that she intended to seek a deferral came the same day a newly formed political action committee formally submitted notice of intent to circulate a recall petition against Willis.
A group of residents threatened a recall effort in August after calling for a delay on three contentious zoning cases, including the Preston-Royal case, for 120 days.
To get the recall placed on the May 2027 ballot, organizers will need signatures from 15% of registered voters in Dallas City Council District 13.
Doug Hazelbaker, one of the organizers of the effort, says the same group that is running the ballot initiative effort for the Save City Hall campaign is leading the petition effort.
