Dallas staff recommend simplified parkland-dedication rules, lower fees for many multifamily projects

Dallas Park and Recreation presented a proposed development-code amendment on June 2 to implement recent state law changes limiting how the five largest Texas cities may require parkland dedication from developers.

The department recommended simplifying the ordinance, reducing seven geographic “nexus” zones to five, setting per-unit fees tied to a percentage of median family income (a 2%/1% methodology staff described during the briefing), and removing unused credit mechanisms from the current code. Staff said they would rarely require land dedications because the law limits dedication to no more than 10% of a developable site and requires the city to pay fair market value for any portion acquired.

Why it matters: The change will alter when and how the city collects parkland dedications and fees from multifamily and hotel-motel developments — uses the state law governs — and could affect how quickly the city can accumulate funds to buy new parkland in areas with the greatest need.

Ryan O’Connor, identified in the meeting as representing Dallas Park and Recreation, told the committee the proposal responds to a bill affecting the five largest Texas cities and is intended to simplify a complex existing ordinance that began in 2019. "Our original ordinance was somewhat complicated…there were all sorts of credit mechanisms, and it could be a little confusing," O’Connor said. He described staff’s preferred fee approach as a “2% for single-family / 2% for two-bed-plus multifamily / 1% for one-bed…