Manvel council rejects special-use permit for proposed freestanding emergency room after hour of public testimony

The Manvel City Council voted unanimously to deny a special-use permit for a proposed freestanding emergency room at a Highway 6 site adjacent to the Bluewater subdivision, concluding a multi-month review and public-comment period.

Supporters of the project, including the applicant and clinicians who would staff the facility, said the ER would provide local, round-the-clock access and create jobs. Opponents — including several neighborhood residents and local emergency medical personnel — said the site and model raise traffic, noise and ambulance-response concerns and questioned whether a freestanding ER is the right land use for the parcel.

The proposal would have allowed a roughly 7,000-square-foot freestanding emergency room next to an AutoZone and Starbucks site along Highway 6, abutting the Bluewater neighborhood. The project team said it would mirror the owner’s existing South Shore ER in League City and employ dozens of people. “We are generator operated so even if there is a hurricane … we will be there,” applicant Dr. Thomas said during the council presentation.

Neighbors and first responders urged the…