Council approves Pine Hill rezoning and development plan with privacy, fence and tree conditions after residents negotiate changes

Flower Mound — Following a public hearing and extended resident–developer discussions, the Town Council on Feb. 3 approved a master-plan amendment and related zoning and subdivision actions for a proposed Pine Hill residential development, with conditions to address neighbor privacy and landscaping.

The council approved three related items (J2, J3 and J4) by unanimous vote. The approvals changed the property’s future land use from low-density residential and removed the site’s prior nursing-congregate care use, replacing it with a proposed medium-high density residential concept: the most recent developer plan showed 14 single-family lots with a proposed 8,000-square-foot minimum lot size.

Planner comments and applicant offer: Town planner Lexin (staff) summarized the request as a master-plan amendment, a planned development (PD) zoning request and a tree removal permit. The applicant, developer Jeff Westcott, presented design iterations and said he had revised the plan multiple times over an 11-month review and had limited remaining options. Westcott told council, "I'm telling you, I'm giving you as much as I can give," and outlined concessions he said were achievable.

Resident concerns and negotiation: Residents of adjacent Grace Park — represented by Dr. Aditi Banerjee and speakers including Melvin Stephen and Rajesh Parachuri — objected to perceived rushed outreach, the proposed density, and proximity of new lots to existing homes. Specific resident requests included larger rear setbacks for lots adjacent to Grace Park, restrictions on second-story windows facing Grace Park, an 8-foot privacy fence, and additional tree plantings.

Council-mediated compromise: After a period of public comment and a short closed-session interlude, the developer and Grace Park representatives reached a set of mutually agreed conditions the council adopted when voting on the zoning and development plan: (1) for Pine Hill lots 1–6, no second-story west-facing windows; (2) installation of board-on-board fencing along the shared property line measured so that the top of the fence is at least 8 feet above the Pine Hill grade where it adjoins Grace Park, with the fence poles located on the Pine Hill side and no portion of the fence being less than 6 feet in actual picket height; (3) burial of interior electrical lines on the site as required by town standards; and (4) at least two shade trees of a minimum 3-inch caliper planted in the backyard of each Pine Hill lot 1–6. Council also accepted the applicant’s revised conceptual landscape plan for the site and the town’s standard tree-protection and replacement requirements.

Developer and landowner remarks: Jeff Westcott and landowner Ed Sedaka said the alternative to approval was to build a skilled-nursing facility that remains allowed under the existing zoning. Sedaka told the council: "it's either gonna be tonight to approve the zoning proposal that's in front of you today, or I'm just gonna move forward with the skilled nursing home." Westcott said he had expended substantial time and resources on repeated plan revisions and urged the council to decide.

Council action and votes: Councilmember Taylor moved and the council recorded unanimous aye votes for all three items. Theresa conducted roll calls that recorded affirmative votes from Councilmember Taylor, Councilmember Drew, Mayor Pro Tem Martin, Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Schistel and Councilmember Werner on J2, J3 and J4.

What the approvals mean: The council’s actions removed the nursing/congregate-care zoning option from the site’s permitted uses and authorized a residential PD with the agreed conditions. The development will proceed to final engineering and subdivision approvals; final grading and building plans will determine exact fence heights relative to finished grades and will be subject to staff review and town standards. The council and staff emphasized the town’s zoning limits: council members noted that the Grace Park lots were created under straight SF-15 standards that resulted in eyebrow/corner lot configurations — an existing development pattern that constrained how much additional buffer the new plan could provide.

Votes at a glance: J2 — Master Plan amendment for Pine Hill: approved unanimously (5–0). J3 — PD zoning and development plan with conditions (windows, fencing, trees, buried lines): approved unanimously (5–0). J4 — Tree removal/related subdivision approvals as presented: approved unanimously (5–0).

Provenance: The public hearing, presentation by town staff (Lexin), the applicant’s presentation (Jeff Westcott) and resident testimony by Dr. Aditi Banerjee, Melvin Stephen and Rajesh Parachuri are the primary transcript sources for this report.