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Manvel council approves subdivision ordinance amendments after debate over well-and-sewer rules
Summary
Council voted to approve amendments to Chapter 62 of the city subdivision ordinance that expand the Original Manvel Town Site boundary and clarify plat and street requirements after removing proposed language that would have compelled new residential connections to city water and sewer.
The Manvel City Council on Tuesday approved amendments to Chapter 62 of the city's subdivision ordinance that expand the Original Manvel Town Site (OMT) boundary and clarify plat, lot and street requirements, after council removed provisions that would have required some new residences to connect to city water and wastewater lines.
City planning staff said the package updates definitions, allows master plans to serve as preliminary plats, revises sidewalk and street construction triggers for county or state rights-of-way, and standardizes lot-width measurement in the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ). Joe, city planning staff, told council that "staff is recommending approval, and the commission is also recommending approval of the proposed changes." The planning and zoning commission earlier held a public hearing and recommended approval.
The most contested item in public discussion and council debate was a provision that would have required new residential connections to city water and sewer where lines run in the right-of-way. Several council members said the draft language could be read to force property owners to run costly lines even when a municipal main was not directly in front of a lot. Mayor Pro Tem and other members said that was not the council's intent. After discussion the council voted to amend the ordinance by striking the two subsections addressing mandatory residential connections; the main ordinance then passed as amended on second reading.
Councilmembers stressed the intent behind the OMT designation remains to allow continuation of some existing standards for roads and to clarify where wells and septic systems remain allowable. Staff said the OMT boundary will be expanded north to Lewis Lane and south to Jordan Road; the minimum acreage to qualify for some OMT allowances will rise from 5 acres to 10 acres. The ordinance also clarifies that nonresidential projects should connect to city utilities where service is reasonably available, while continuing to allow existing wells and septic for existing residential uses when no city utility is directly adjacent to the lot.
The council enclosed the well-and-sewer language in the OMT text after questioning how it would interact with standard city rules. Joe and City Manager Dan Johnson said removing those subsections makes utility connection rules consistent across the city while preserving the OMT's other special provisions. The ordinance passed unanimously after the amendment.
Council members and staff said the change should reduce confusion for property owners and developers; any future requirement to compel connections would be presented separately for council consideration.
Looking ahead, staff said the revised ordinance will take effect according to the timeline in the adopted ordinance, and the expanded OMT boundary will appear on the planning maps available at city planning offices.
