Staff outlines town-center Overlay District design guidelines; board asks about materials, parking and ownership models

City staff presented the town-center Overlay District design guidelines and asked the ARB for guidance on the visual character the city should expect from future applicants.

Speaker 3 (staff) opened the discussion explaining the meeting’s purpose: "The purpose of this meeting is to identify what it is that we actually wanna see in the Overlay District." Staff summarized the slide deck the city council reviewed, describing two primary character zones—"farmhouse chic" and "historic Texas"—and showing example elements such as large display windows, awnings or canopies, street trees, consistent lighting and outdoor seating to promote a pedestrian downtown environment.

Staff emphasized regulatory constraints that applicants must meet: "We don't allow 3 stories here. It's 2 stories and the second story is a conditional use permit," Speaker 3 said, noting the difference between the design book's illustrative graphics and the existing zoning/regulations. The staff presentation also identified required landscape and streetscape…