Richardson City Plan Commission Meeting August 7th, 2024
OPENING
Six of the seven regular commissioners are present. One alternate, Byron Purdy, is also present and will participate. Commissioner Roberts is absent.
The room is full of visitors. The public gallery is usually located on one side of the room while the dais and staff area are on the other. For this meeting, that gallery surrounds the dais on both sides.
The previous meeting’s minutes are approved unanimously.
PUBLIC HEARING – CORAM DEO ACADEMY (AGAIN)
Now, the reason so many visitors are in attendance, a public hearing on something the city is calling “ZF 24-17”. “ZF 24-17” is the exact same request as ZF 24-02, a special permit for a private Christian school, Coram Deo Academy, at 1301 Abrams Rd. Council denied this exact same request on April 22nd. I don’t recall it being explicitly stated that the denial was without prejudice. The minutes don’t specify if the denial was with or without prejudice either. Denying with prejudice would prevent the same case from being brought back for a calendar year. Denying without prejudice removes this restriction. Regardless, this is the exact same request, word for word, as the one Council denied 5-1 in April. The only added condition is that “No Left Turn from 8AM-4PM M-F” signs shall be installed. Oh, and this time, the same request comes with 165 letters of support. Are these mostly from currently enrolled families? We’re about to find out.
Staff presents the same background of the same request. It’s all the same. Nothing has changed. The existing church is vacating the property and the school wants to occupy it. (Remember that Council cited land use and impact to RISD as reasons for denying in April. If the church vacates, this Neighborhood Services-designated area has a chance to potentially become redeveloped as a tax-producing retail services area. We need that.)
Staff states this is considered a ‘reapplication’ for the case. The applicant’s correspondence confirms that 129 letters are from currently enrolled families. The applicant confirms in their letter that most of these 165 letters are not from Richardson residents. (Only 47% of the originally included 165 letters are from Richardson residents.) The applicant also confirms in their correspondence that they seek for this property to be occupied by a private school or church for at least another generation. A look at the tuition shown on Coram Deo’s website shows that annual tuition costs range from $6.5K-$13K. Considering the maximum proposed enrollment of 748 students, that means Coram Deo would bring in $5M-$10M annually at maximum enrollment, not including electives, books, or uniform revenues. This academy also currently operates out of Temple Shalom already. (It seems to me that the move is to increase their enrollment capacity, but so far that is my assertion, not the applicant’s.)
Staff clarifies that they have received, to date, 199 letters in support of the request. So, some have been received since the agenda packet was published.
Commissioner Beach asks what the capacity of the storm shelter would be. This is answered in both agenda packets from the March CPC hearing and today’s. This was also explicitly stated by staff at the last CPC hearing. “The capacity is designed to hold 400 students and 50 staff.” Chair Marsh asks questions confirming traffic levels and queueing plans.
The applicant steps forward to present their same plans. The applicant focuses on attempting to counter the reasons Council cited for their original denial. The applicant clarifies that RISD is officially neutral to the request. The applicant asks all visitors in support of the request to rise. He then instructs them not to speak as the indication of support is enough and they don’t want to disrespect the commission’s time.
Commissioner Purdy asks the applicant to summarize Council’s concern about the impact on RISD. (That Council meeting is uploaded and available for viewing on the city website. April 22nd. If memory serves, Mayor Dubey was the only one who expressed concern about the impact to RISD.) The applicant states that he thinks Council thought they were a charter school accepting public dollars. He states they have a current enrollment of 480. (So, yes, this is to expand enrollment.) Vice-Chair Southard asks for a summary of opposition. The applicant states that most opposition was due to traffic impact and parking.
In addition to the visitors who indicated their support, two speakers are also present. The first speaker is the Richland Neighborhood Association treasurer, speaking on behalf of the association. He expresses that they do not oppose the request. The second speaker, speaks on behalf of Binnerri Presbyterian Church, the church that Coram Deo wants to move into. He supports the request.
The CPC unanimously recommends approval.
PUBLIC HEARING – THE NEST WELLNESS COMPLEX
The second public hearing is on ZF 24-18, a special development plan request for a mixed-use multi-building health and wellness center at E. Kaufman and S. Texas St. This is within the Main Street Subdistrict of the Main St./Central Expy Planned Development District. The currently listed vision for this subdistrict is as follows: “The vision for the Main Street Sub-district is to create a multi-generational eclectic “heart” for the community based on a mix of uses and cultures; to permit a mix of old and new architectural styles; and to provide for additional entertainment destination opportunities for the community.”
Staff presents a background of the request. The applicant is requesting to build a “wellness village” with a dozen allowed uses including restaurants, community gardens, art studios, retail, health clubs, and special events including an open-air market on weekends. This is affiliated with The Nest Motherhood nonprofit. The request proposes seven buildings to be constructed surrounding a courtyard. Two letters of support have been received.
The commission asks questions clarifying parking, fencing, and spacing. Chair Marsh asks why the area currently allows only residential uses. Staff answers that neighbors were concerned about the impact that nonresidential uses would have on their homes. This is a result of a petition by the neighboring property owners. The applicant steps forward to present their request. She compares her vision for this wellness village to Magnolia in Waco. The concept revolves around family. This concept will create smaller (750-1,000 sq. ft.) retail spaces for local, artisanal small businesses. Chair Marsh asks clarifying questions about the site plan including landscaping, dumpster placement, and sidewalks.
The first speaker, a nearby business owner, supports the request. The second speaker, a representative from the All Moms Methodist nonprofit, also supports the request. The third speaker, a neighboring property owner, opposes the request. He expresses concerns about the 40 ft. height of the main building, the 6 ft. proposed wooden fence, and dumpster placement. He prefers an 8 ft. board-on-board fence for privacy for his residential properties. He also requests the existing fence lines be followed and attached as a condition. He also wants to make sure foot traffic doesn’t cut across the front lawn of neighboring houses. And, he is concerned about light pollution on the neighboring houses. The fourth speaker, also a nearby business owner, supports the request.
The applicant responds to the speaker’s concerns. They are agreeable to any conditions that are responsive to the opposed speaker’s concerns. Staff addresses concerns expressed. Commissioner Costantino suggests putting the dumpster on the southwest corner as a condition. The CPC unanimously recommends approval with the additional condition of an 8 ft. fence. Staff will work with the applicant to get the dumpster located in an appropriate place. Meeting adjourned.