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Planning and Zoning Commission approves site plan for Southlake Medical Office; TxDOT ramp changes cited
Summary
The commission approved a site plan for a medical office building at 451 E. State Highway 114, with staff conditions; discussion focused on a driveway relocation driven by TxDOT ramp reversals and pedestrian connectivity across the campus.
The Southlake Planning and Zoning Commission approved a site plan for the Southlake Medical Office building at 451 East State Highway 114, part of the Southlake Methodist Hospital campus, voting 5''1 to approve the project subject to staff conditions.
The site is in a mixed-use land-use designation and carries SP-2 (generalized site plan) zoning with a medical-office overlay. Staff presentations and applicant testimony said the lot will be developed as a medical office building and that the developer has shown a dashed line to accommodate a future driveway relocation requested by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT).
Why it matters: TxDOT is planning ramp reversals on State Highway 114 that will change how frontage-road traffic and ramps align with the hospital campus. TxDOT reviewed the driveway location and has asked for the driveway to be moved east to maintain safe access as ramps are realigned; the applicant and site engineer said the developer has accommodated that change in the plan.
Details and debate: Skyler Lyle, the civil engineer for the applicant (Baird, Hampton & Brown), told commissioners the site was surveyed and the drive currently sits within public utility easements and that moving a building into that area would require significant utility work. He said grade differences, existing easements and the future TxDOT configuration constrained how buildings and pedestrian connections could be arranged. The applicant said they provided a 10-foot crosswalk to improve pedestrian access, but acknowledged the crosswalk is not the same as the building-to-building connection shown in an earlier concept plan.
Doug Mosel, representing the property owner, said TxDOT and the property owners had met and that TxDOT had requested the driveway move to the east to improve safety at the off-ramp gore point and to enhance emergency access, including ambulances.
Commissioners expressed a preference for a campus-like, walkable connection between buildings along the corridor but accepted staff's explanation that easements, grades and TxDOT's ramp work limited options. The motion to approve made the vote subject to the staff report dated Jan. 3, 2025 and a revised site plan review summary also dated Jan. 3.
Outcome: The commission voted to approve the site plan with conditions noted in the staff report; the recorded tally on the motion was five yes votes and one no vote. The applicant was reminded that the City Council will consider the item at its February 4 meeting.
Ending: Staff and the applicant said they would continue coordination with TxDOT and finalize details ahead of the council hearing.
