Jenks council approves rezoning at 130 First and Harvard for gated single‑family development

The Jenks City Council on March 4 approved a comprehensive‑plan amendment and a rezoning to allow a private, gated single‑family community at 130 First Street and Harvard.

The vote approved a comp‑plan amendment (PA 205‑45) to medium‑intensity single family and rezoned roughly 10 acres to RS‑2 with a Planned Unit Development overlay (PUD 152). The council also approved Ordinance No. 1666 (rezone to RS‑2/PUD 152) and an emergency clause that put the ordinance into effect immediately. The council recorded one “no” vote on the items (Brown); the remainder voted yes.

Why it matters: The developer is proposing a low‑density private neighborhood with features the applicant described as a “stocked fishing pond,” passive recreation trails, a seven‑foot masonry entry wall and deeper lots than typical RS‑2 zoning. Staff and the applicant said the proposed plan would yield about 30 dwelling units, well under the 54 units the underlying zoning would permit.

City staff presented the background and standards for the request. The staff report noted that the land was previously split between agriculture and local commercial uses after earlier applications in 2021. Planner Marcee Hilton told the council that the requested RS‑2 zoning would require minimum lot areas and setbacks consistent with the code, and that the applicant was requesting a PUD because the project would depart from some standard bulk requirements. Hilton said the project proposes lots roughly 70 feet by 150 feet and “about 30” dwelling units, yielding an average land area per dwelling of about 14,550 square feet under the proposed layout — substantially less dense than what code would allow absent the PUD.

Applicant Ryan McCarty of Select Design summarized the proposed product. He said the lots are deep enough to accommodate private swimming pools, the homes would include three‑car garages and the target market is a 55‑plus buyer; he told the council an expected price point “somewhere around $700” (as stated at the hearing). McCarty added that the developer intends a high level of masonry on street facades.

Council debate focused largely on compatibility with adjacent uses. Councilor Brown and others raised concerns about a nearby cannabis grow operation the council repeatedly called “the Grove facility,” citing past neighborhood complaints about odor and security. Brown urged staff to consider Unified Development Ordinance updates to provide larger setbacks or buffers where residential abuts grow facilities. Staff noted the proposal includes a 35‑foot exterior side yard where lots abut 130 First Street. Hilton reiterated that the applicant’s PUD proposes less density and more open space than the underlying zoning would allow.

Votes and formal actions: The council approved the comp‑plan amendment (PA 205‑45) and then approved rezoning under Ordinance No. 1666 (Jenks Zoning 25, PUD 152). Roll calls showed Councilor Brown voting no on each rezone/emergency clause vote; all other council members present voted yes. The emergency clause for Ordinance 1666 also passed, putting the ordinance into immediate effect.

What’s next: With council approval the PUD and rezoning move forward for administrative implementation and recordation. Staff said the application would return to planning commission as part of the routine paperwork flow, and that any future development permits will require standard plan reviews, engineering approvals and compliance with the PUD conditions and the adopted code.

Key quotes: “Those entry features are really elegant, very beautiful, and it shouldn’t really be an issue,” Marcee Hilton said in her staff presentation about the PUD’s design features. “We originally said it should be single‑family residential,” Hilton said when recounting the property’s comp‑plan history; she also noted surrounding development that has changed since the original approvals.

Ending: Council members asked staff to consider UDO clarifications about setbacks and buffers where residential is proposed adjacent to cannabis operations; the council also approved the developer’s PUD and rezoning, enabling the project to proceed through subsequent site‑plan and permitting steps.