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Farmers Branch council directs staff to draft broader zoning notice, staff to propose 300-foot radius
Summary
Council discussed whether to expand the city’s 200-foot mailing boundary for zoning notices, heard comparisons with neighboring cities, and asked staff to prepare a text amendment proposing a 300-foot courtesy notification radius while preserving the 200-foot protest boundary required by state law.
City planning staff asked the City Council on March 4 whether to expand the city’s 200-foot notification radius for zoning cases so more residents and businesses learn about proposed changes. Sarah Bergman, deputy director of planning, said Farmers Branch currently follows state law: staff mails letters to property owners within 200 feet of a site, posts signs on affected properties and posts case information on the city website.
Bergman said a survey of 16 neighboring cities found 12 use a 200-foot boundary, while Dallas, Fort Worth and Garland use larger radii; Colleyville uses 500 feet. She warned that state law sets the protest eligibility at the 200-foot boundary, meaning any expanded radius would be a courtesy notice only and would not change who can legally file a zoning protest that triggers a supermajority vote.
Council members voiced support for expanding notice to reach more neighbors. Councilman Neal said several past cases left homeowners just outside the 200-foot limit and that additional notice would allow them to comment. Councilman Jackson argued for a larger courtesy radius and said the additional postal cost would often be minimal. Councilman Johnson suggested 500 feet was reasonable but staff recommended starting with a more modest expansion.
“Anybody within or outside of that radius is welcome to submit correspondence, get to come to the hearing,” Bergman said, but noted the 200-foot protest calculation would not change. After discussion, staff recommended drafting a text amendment for a 300-foot notification radius and returning it to planning and zoning and council for formal consideration. Council asked staff to include an approximate cost estimate for additional mailings when the text amendment returns.
The change, if approved through the ordinance amendment process, would broaden direct mailing for zoning petitions, special-use permits and similar land-use cases while leaving the protest boundary at the state-mandated 200-foot threshold.
