Planning commission recommends approval for Churchill Crossing PD amendment to allow Nichiha siding

The Flower Mound Planning & Zoning Commission on July 28 recommended that the Town Council approve an amendment to Planned Development (PD) 28 to permit Nichiha fiber-cement siding and a revised color palette at a redeveloped retail site at the southwest corner of Churchill Drive and Long Prairie Road.

Planning staff presented the request as ZPD25-0004, an amendment to the existing PD that applies to a property currently developed as a former bank building the applicant plans to redevelop as a jewelry retail store. Claire Barnes of Planning Services said the site is already zoned PD 28 (retail uses) and that the applicant seeks relief from PD 28 material and color restrictions so Nichiha can be used as a primary façade material and the building can adopt lighter, wood‑tone colors rather than the PD’s historically specified brick palette.

Barnes told the commission that PD 28, established in the mid-1980s and amended several times (staff cited 1993, a 1996 design amendment for an area across the street, and a 2001 reconfiguration), currently requires that 70% of street-facing and customer-facing walls be brick in two St. Joe color ranges. The town’s urban design guidance treats certain materials as “primary” (brick, stone, stucco) and others as “alternative,” with a notional 80/20 split; alternative materials above 20% typically require a nondiscretionary site-plan review. The applicant asked that Nichiha, a manufactured fiber-cement product, be allowed as a primary material so the applicant could use it without triggering a nondiscretionary review if the alternate-material share exceeds 20 percent.

Barnes said staff sent notices to property owners within 200 feet and received no written correspondence in favor or opposition, only informational inquiries. The applicant, Brandon Alford of 402 Old Justin Road, Argyle, Texas, told the commission he and his business have longstanding local retail experience and that he has used Nichiha on his own home for two years without observing fading.

Commissioners asked staff and the applicant several practical questions about how the material ages and how the former bank drive-through area would be used; Barnes said the applicant indicated the former drive-through may be used for customer pick-up and drop-off for jewelry repairs. Commissioners who spoke during deliberation generally described the proposed changes as tasteful and consistent with surrounding newer development, and several commissioners noted PD 28 covers properties that are somewhat scattered, which they said makes a targeted amendment more reasonable.

At the close of deliberations a motion to recommend approval of item I-1 as written passed on a voice/roll call vote. The record shows Commissioners Harris, Jackson, Langley, Vice Chair Hobbs, Baick and Schultz voting aye; no no votes, abstentions, or recusals were recorded. The commission’s recommendation moves the amendment to the Town Council for final consideration.

The applicant and staff will return to the council should the council approve the PD amendment; Barnes said staff will continue to refine the amended site plan and material percentages before council consideration.

Votes at a glance: A motion to recommend approval of ZPD25-0004 (Churchill Crossing PD amendment) passed on roll call with six ayes and no dissenters.

Next steps: The Planning & Zoning Commission’s recommendation is advisory; the Town Council will make the final decision on the PD amendment.