Zoning and Planning Commission approves SF-6 rezoning for Acres West Lot 20 over neighborhood objections

The Zoning and Planning Commission on Tuesday approved a rezoning that will allow townhouse/condominium development on a previously unzoned lot in the Acres West neighborhood. The commission voted to change the property at 13608 Caldwell Drive from interim rural residence (IRR) to SF-6 (townhouse and condominium) zoning, with a final tally of six in favor, one opposed and one abstention.

Staff planner Sherry Serwatus told commissioners the 0.407-acre lot fronts Caldwell Drive and is surrounded by a mix of office zoning (to the north and east), single-family residences to the south (zoned SF-2) and condominium development to the west. Staff recommended SF-6, saying it provides a transition from nearby office uses to the single-family neighborhood and establishes a permanent zoning designation on an undeveloped parcel.

The applicant’s representative, Trisha Ritter, said multiple attempts to meet with the neighborhood failed and argued SF-6 would provide housing options compatible with nearby townhomes and condominiums. Ritter told the commission the site is not in a floodplain, that typical transportation and emergency-access standards will be reviewed at permitting, and that the owner has held the lot since 2010.

Several neighbors opposed the rezoning in public testimony. Cindy Barron, a long-time Acres West resident, and others said the lot is part of a legally platted subdivision that historically used SF-2 designations and submitted that private deed restrictions prohibit attached single-family dwellings. Neighbors raised safety and infrastructure concerns: Caldwell Drive is narrow, lacks sidewalks, curbs and adequate turnarounds, and the single point of access at U.S. 183 raises emergency access and school-bus safety issues. Architect Mac Holder and others showed photos of narrow streets, missing turnarounds and constrained access for emergency vehicles.

Commissioner discussion centered on two recurring issues: the limits of the commission’s authority when a private deed restriction may restrict development, and whether postponement would produce a neighborhood–applicant agreement. Staff clarified that private deed restrictions are enforced by private parties, not the city, and that development on interim-zoned property requires permanent zoning before building permits can be issued. Commissioner Betsy Greenberg said she would vote against the rezoning because it would permit uses that may violate a private deed restriction; Commissioner Alejandro Flores announced an abstention.

With a motion to approve staff’s recommendation, the commission recorded six yes votes, one no (Commissioner Betsy Greenberg) and one abstention (Commissioner Alejandro Flores). The motion passed and the rezoning to SF-6 was approved.

The applicant and neighborhood repeatedly referred to unresolved private covenants; staff and commissioners emphasized the difference between private deed restrictions (enforced by property owners) and municipal zoning authority (enforced by city code). Any future development will require site-plan review and must comply with applicable stormwater, access and site-improvement standards.

The commission’s action establishes a permanent zoning category on the previously undeveloped lot but does not override private deed restrictions; neighbors retain whatever private remedies are available under their covenants.