Applicant withdraws church conversion proposal; staff explains refund policy and warns of scammers

Hundred Acre Academy withdrew its conditional‑use application to repurpose a church on Court Street, the Dallas Planning Commission heard at its meeting.

The commission chair said the applicant decided not to pursue approval after reviewing the staff report and recommended conditions. Commissioners and staff said the conversion of an older building raised increasing costs for fire, life‑safety and building‑code compliance that likely contributed to the decision.

When asked what happens to the application fee, staff member Chase explained that the city has drafted administrative policies for refunds but that the draft has not been ratified. "Under that proposed policy, you would get a 30% refund if you have withdrawn after public notices have gone out, but that's not, like, written and official," Chase said. He added the city manager could approve what he feels appropriate.

Staff also warned commissioners about fraudulent solicitations aimed at applicants. "There are some scammers out there who are using publicly available information off of our website to try and extort development fees out of our applicants," Chase said, citing emails that impersonate a staff member and ask for $5,000. Commissioners urged applicants to contact staff directly if they receive suspicious requests.

What happens next: The chair said he would recognize staff efforts preparing for the pulled hearing and that staff will finalize any internal refund policy and communicate the city manager's decision if the manager chooses to grant refunds or not. The commission did not take further action at the meeting.

Clarifications: The 30% refund figure referenced by staff is from a draft administrative policy and is not an adopted rule; staff said in some cases, if an applicant withdraws after a hearing, a refund may not be given at all.