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Commission continues Texas Health helipad request after residents and commission raise access and school-traffic concerns
Summary
Planning commissioners continued consideration of a specific-use permit for a helipad at a proposed Texas Health integrated facility at South 14th Street and Hawken Run, asking staff and the applicant to review access points, the mutual-access easement to the north and emergency-vehicle operations during school drop-off/pick-up hours.
The Midlothian Planning & Zoning Commission voted to continue a request for a specific-use permit for a helipad tied to a proposed Texas Health integrated facility on about 12.689 acres at the northwest corner of South 14th Street and Hawken Run Road.
Staff described the site as a commercial-retail tract within Plan Development District 81 and said the proposed use includes a two-story clinical building for outpatient services, an eventual ambulatory surgical center, medical office space and an emergency department. The helipad is proposed in the northwest corner of the site with restrictions in the PD ordinance limiting helipad operations to patient and medical transport; staff recommended approval of the SUP for the helipad but noted several variances related to signage and a parking-ratio variance request.
John Sullivan, vice president of real estate for Texas Health Resources, described the facility as a freestanding integrated health center with emergency-department services but without inpatient overnight beds. “This will have hospital services minus the beds,” Sullivan said, explaining the helipad is for rare cases in which patients require rapid transport to other facilities.
Traffic and access questions dominated the hearing. Omkar Dunker, the applicants traffic engineer, said school drop-off/pick-up times are concentrated and that the emergency entrance is sited to avoid queuing conflicts with the nearby elementary school; he said counts show the school queue is concentrated on the south side of the school. The developer and traffic consultant said the emergency entrance will be positioned and designed to allow ambulance access without blocking school queuing lanes.
Neighbors and nearby developers urged caution. Elliot Barnett, developer of the adjacent Midpark project, said his team had not been notified previously about certain access drives and expressed concern about ambulance stacking and connections that would cross or abut Midpark property.
Commissioners asked staff to pursue follow-up work with the applicant and the property owner to clarify the mutual-access easement to the north, to assess ambulance routing and school-time conflicts, and to provide FAA or FAA-consultant flight-safety documentation that may be required for helipad approval. Staff and commissioners also discussed that FAA and state rules govern technical safety standards for helipads and any required clear zones.
After discussion a commissioner moved to continue the item to the April meeting to allow staff and the applicant time to address access and emergency-vehicle operations; the motion passed. The continuation leaves the SUP unresolved but gives staff time to check access agreements, the applicant's FAA coordination and traffic analyses and to return with recommended conditions or changes.
