Council hears lengthy debate on mixed-use rezoning (PD 170); executive session requested for legal consultation

Midlothian City Council spent extended time on Sept. 23 discussing a proposed rezoning to create Planned Development (PD) 170 for a roughly 10.284-acre site on the south side of East Ridge Drive north of Main Street. The proposal would allow a mix of vertical mixed-use buildings, townhomes and community retail.

City planner Mary Elliott described the three subdistricts, pedestrian connections, parking counts and unit mix. The project includes 64 townhome units, vertical mixed-use buildings with tuck-under parking and ground-floor retail and a planned set of amenities (playground, dog park, seating, shade structures). The applicant agreed to bury utilities after a nearby resident requested it and staff included the commitment in the ordinance language.

A resident, Lisa Healy, urged the council to require townhomes to be owner-occupied rather than rented. Developer representatives said the townhome portion would be condominiumized but that the vertical mixed-use portion was intended as apartments; they also said they would condominiumize the townhomes if the council insisted. City legal counsel and staff cautioned that forbidding rentals may present legal challenges under Texas law and advised against an across-the-board ban on rentals.

Council members focused on density and location. One councilor said the site’s proposed 124 units on about 10.284 acres (roughly 12 units per acre) felt high and asked whether a lower overall density (about 10 units per acre) would be more appropriate for the area; another member said the city’s new comprehensive plan intentionally directs mixed-use and denser development to nodes with existing infrastructure. Councilmembers asked for clarity on how the mixed-use breakdown would affect citywide density calculations under the new comp plan.

The applicant said they had worked on the project for more than two years and described a phasing approach that would start townhome construction along East Ridge Drive and begin the smaller mixed-use building containing leasing and resident amenities. Architect Michael Smith said three-story mixed-use buildings of this type typically have higher densities and that the project’s densities are within commonly used local ranges.

Following extended discussion and a request for legal clarification about comp-plan calculations and rental restrictions, a council member requested a brief executive session under Texas Government Code Section 551.071 for legal consultation. No final vote on the rezoning occurred at the Sept. 23 meeting; the item remained under consideration pending closed-session legal advice and possible future action.