Leander council approves Oasis rezoning after residents press for karst studies and drainage safeguards

Leander City Council on April 17 voted unanimously to rezone roughly 10.01 acres near the end of Raider Way from SFR-1B (single-family rural) to SFS-2A (single-family suburban), despite lengthy public testimony urging the council to pause rezonings until independent geotechnical and karst studies are completed.

The rezoning request, filed as zoning case Z-24-0151 and described by city staff as consistent with the future land use map and the city’s water-resolution lot-size limits, was recommended for approval by the Planning and Zoning Commission. Executive Director of Development Services Griffin told the council the zoning change itself does not authorize construction; site-specific engineering — including geotechnical reports, engineered drainage plans and any required traffic studies — must be submitted and approved before developers can receive permits.

Why it matters

A large group of Marbella and nearby homeowners told the council they have experienced sinkholes, persistent yard flooding and chronic drainage problems and asked the city to require mandatory geotechnical or karst assessments before approving further rezoning or permitting in known Comanche Peak limestone areas. Speakers also warned of traffic and school-access impacts if more homes and an additional private school are added to the streets that serve the neighborhood.

What residents told the council

Dozens of residents and neighborhood representatives spoke during the public hearing. Daniel Reid, a Marbella resident and one of the organizers who said he had gathered more than 50 signatures, told the council: "If this council chooses to ignore this overwhelming opposition, if you vote to approve this rezoning against the direct documented wishes of the families who bear the burden of that decision, then you are sending a message... that the voices of Leander homeowners do not matter." Reid said a majority of properties within 200 feet of the parcel oppose rezoning.

Anita Chmnavich, identified in remarks as the president of the Marbella homeowners association, detailed long-running drainage problems in the neighborhood and urged the council to reject the rezoning until the underlying drainage and subsurface conditions are studied. "Copying Austin's drainage criteria into Leander implies a development culture focused on speed and uniformity over risk mitigation," she told the council.

Several other residents described sinkholes appearing in recent months, yards that remain ponded for days after rain, and water-stained foundations. A smaller number of residents spoke in favor of the rezoning, saying the proposed subdivision would be lower-density than some nearby developments and would add housing choice to the area.

Staff response and process constraints

Griffin explained that under the city’s development process, technical studies such as geotechnical reports, drainage engineering and traffic impact analyses are typically required at the engineering and platting stage after zoning is in place because they are expensive and generally prepared only when a developer is ready to invest in design work. "When the project comes in for development, they're required to provide engineered drainage reports, a geotechnical report, as well as engineered plans for roads and the water and the wastewater," Griffin said. "Part of the drainage is to determine that there's no adverse impact to adjacent properties."

Griffin also noted that the water-resolution limits for the parcel support the 70-foot-wide lot pattern allowed by SFS-2A zoning and that the Planning & Zoning Commission recommended approval.

Council action and next steps

Councilmember motion and a second resulted in a unanimous vote to approve zoning case Z-24-0151. The council record notes the parcel was annexed into the city under an interim SFR designation and that rezoning is the normal administrative step when properties move from agricultural or rural designations toward their long-term use.

Council members repeatedly acknowledged residents' concerns and urged residents and applicants to use the engineering and platting stages to resolve drainage and karst-related questions. The council did not enact any immediate moratorium or ordinance change; instead it approved the requested zoning change and left required technical reviews and any permit conditions to the subsequent platting and permit-review stages.

Credits and evidence

The public hearing and vote are recorded in the April 17, 2025 Leander City Council transcript; extensive public comment on karst and sinkhole risk begins when the council opened the public hearing for zoning case Z-24-0151 and continues through the council’s motion to approve the rezoning.