The Helotes City Council on Oct. 23 opened and kept open a public hearing on a request from Killen Griffin and Fairmont PLLC to amend the planned unit development (PUD) zoning for Parcel 2 of Bandera Ranch (BCAD property ID 1434317). The council did not vote; the mayor said the hearing will remain open until the council’s next meeting on Nov. 13, when the applicants are expected to be present.

The PUD amendment application, as read into the record by the mayor, would add two specific changes to Parcel 2: (1) for Track A, require that the first use on the hard corner at Bandera and Scenic Loop Road be a single-tenant full-service restaurant occupying at least 4,000 square feet; and (2) for Track B, allow one restaurant with a drive-through as a permitted use that runs with the tract rather than with a particular tenant. The mayor also said any additional drive-through requests on Parcel 2 would require council approval under the city’s normal permitting process.

Why it matters: residents told the council the changes could increase congestion and pose a public-safety risk at a nearby eight-lane convergence and busy intersection. If the council later approves amendments that allow additional drive-throughs or fast-food uses, residents and staff said traffic, emergency access and the character of nearby commercial development could be affected.

Two residents spoke during the hearing. Judith Hurst, a Helotes resident, described the intersection as congested and cited crash figures: she said a four-year review showed about 3,333 crashes on Bandera, with roughly 600 occurring in the area she described (transcript timeframe cited by Hurst). Hurst told the council that a nearby Chick-fil-A manager told her 1,299 cars used that restaurant in a single day in April, and she urged caution because of recent traffic fatalities and backups from highway closures.

Amy Burrell, a Helotes resident who said she lives on Lazy J Trail, opposed the PUD changes and the proposed drive-through allowance. “I am here to oppose this PUD,” Burrell said, arguing that the community had expected smaller, boutique development and that the current language could allow uses at odds with the city’s desired character. “Helotes has been gifted a Trojan horse,” she said, urging the council to represent local residents’ interests rather than the developer’s.

The applicants, Killen Griffin and Fairmont PLLC, were not present; the mayor said the hearing will remain open and the council will accept additional public comments at its next meeting on Nov. 13, when the applicants are expected to attend. No formal action was taken Oct. 23.

Next steps: the public hearing record will stay open until the Nov. 13 council meeting, when the council will take any action on the PUD amendment request.