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Lufkin council denies Encore’s special-use permit for Brentwood substation after residents’ objections
Summary
After more than an hour of testimony from residents and a presentation by Encore, the Lufkin City Council voted 6-1 to deny a special-use permit that would have allowed Encore to replace an existing substation on Brentwood Drive, citing unresolved concerns about compatibility with Crown Colony and nearby homes.
Lufkin City Council voted 6-1 on Feb. 3 to deny Encore’s application for a special-use permit to replace an electrical substation on a roughly 5.8-acre tract along Brentwood Drive adjacent to the Crown Colony subdivision.
The council’s decision followed a presentation from Encore representative Jaren Taylor and an extended public comment period in which neighbors raised objections including property-rights claims, potential effects on home values, safety and proximity to an elementary school. Joyce Johnson, president of the Crown Colony Improvement Association, told the council the dispute “is about whether the city of Lufkin will respect the property rights that residents relied on” and urged denial.
Taylor told the council the work is a replacement — not a new station — intended to address growing electrical demand and reliability problems. “This property has been maintained, and it has served its entire useful life,” Taylor said, describing the existing station as 1960s vintage and saying the facility is expected to reach about 117% of capacity in summer 2026. He said the replacement would add three transformers, provide space for future expansion, and include an 8-foot masonry wall and landscaping to reduce noise and visual impacts.
Residents disputed Encore’s framing and raised legal and safety concerns. Several speakers cited court rulings and deed-restriction arguments; others focused on potential fire hazards and the station’s proximity to an elementary school. Lacey Friesen Luce told the council the project would have “a direct and irreversible impact” on her mother, who lives across the street from the proposed site. Fire Chief Jesse Moody reviewed transformer materials and said the proposed equipment uses mineral oil and that he had not found the new design to be “giantly unsafe.”
Council members questioned whether denial could prompt an appeal to the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC), which officials and Encore representatives said has in some previous cases overturned municipal denials. Encore warned that if the PUC reviewed the project and approved it, the company’s standard installation could include a chain-link fence rather than the masonry wall and landscaping Encore offered the council voluntarily.
After discussion, a council member moved to follow Planning & Zoning’s recommendation to deny the permit. The mayor announced the roll call count as six votes in favor of denial and one opposed, and declared the motion carried. The denial means the application will not move forward through the city’s permitting process; Encore or affected parties could pursue administrative remedies at the PUC or in court.
The council did not adopt any mitigations or conditions as part of the denial. The record presented to the council included 12 letters in opposition and two in support, and the Planning & Zoning Commission had voted unanimously to recommend denial at its Jan. 12 hearing.
The council moved on to other business after the vote; the meeting adjourned at 6:44 p.m.
