Flower Mound commission backs plan amendment to reclassify two First Ranch road segments

The Town of Flower Mound Transportation Commission voted March 11 to recommend a master-plan amendment (MPA 25-00001) that reclassifies two mixed-use arterial segments in the First Ranch development as Urban Minor Arterials and forwards the item to the Planning and Zoning Commission on March 24 and to Town Council on April 7.

Commissioners and staff said the primary change would remove on-street parking on the two segments, reduce the right-of-way from 100 feet to 90 feet and retain a four-lane divided cross section (two 12-foot lanes each direction). Staff and the developer representative said the change produces only a slight increase in roadway capacity because removing on-street parking reduces turning and parking-related friction.

The amendment was presented to the commission as part of a package that included a vicinity map, the current thoroughfare plan, a traffic-impact analysis and proposed cross sections. Staff said the current mixed-use arterial called for a 100-foot right-of-way with on-street parking; the Urban Minor Arterial proposal keeps the divided, four-lane layout but omits on-street parking and narrows right-of-way to 90 feet. A McAdams representative, Bobby Dollock, described the proposed cross section — a median (about 15 feet), two 12-foot travel lanes per direction and parking removed for the two segments — and said design work could begin this summer on some main roads.

Commission discussion focused on long-term capacity and safety. Commissioners asked whether a future conversion to six lanes would be possible without purchasing additional right-of-way; staff said expanding to six lanes likely would require buying more property and that nearby single-lane roundabouts would limit the usefulness of a six‑lane approach. Commissioners cited safety and operational concerns at roundabouts and the potential friction from on-street parking as drivers enter or exit parking spaces.

Staff also clarified pedestrian and landscape elements for the segments: the typical schematic showed an 11-foot parkway including a sidewalk; the applicable zoning code calls for a 6-foot sidewalk in most places, and staff said the project team plans to install 6-foot sidewalks and enhanced landscaping at entry areas. The two affected stretches measure roughly 1,200 feet each, and the northwest quadrant of the First Ranch area was described as about 1,600 acres.

The commission took a single motion to accept staff’s recommendation to amend Section 7 of the Town’s Thoroughfare Plan for the two segments and to forward the amendment to Planning and Zoning and Town Council. The motion passed unanimously: Commissioners Barrios, Clark, Landry, Hughes, Vandeau and Vice Chair Hogue voted yes. The commission closed the agenda after the vote.

The amendment does not itself authorize construction; it changes the thoroughfare classification on the master plan and, if approved by Planning and Zoning and Town Council, will guide subsequent site-plan and construction decisions for the two segments.