Lewisville planning commission recommends Castle Hills Crown Center amendments to city council

The Lewisville Planning and Zoning Commission on March 3 recommended that city council approve a set of amendments to the Castle Hills Crown Center planned development, voting 7–0 to forward both text changes and concept-plan/exhibit updates.

Jonathan, the presenter for the item, told commissioners the Crown Center Subdistrict was adopted in January 2022 and that “market and development patterns have shifted drastically since COVID‑19,” with less demand for office space. He said the package includes two linked components: technical text amendments and changes to three concept-plan exhibits, and that the items will be considered by city council on April 6, 2026.

Key changes described by Jonathan include: allowing the planning director to approve minor changes to concept-plan elements such as building location and size (so long as changes are minor); removing all language that had allowed extended‑stay hotels with kitchenettes in the Crown Center area; modifying multifamily-unit counting rules so that units above a defined floor would not count toward the overall Crown Center cap when approved through a special‑use permit; and adding design guidance for ground‑floor live/work units and for pedestrian frontage adjacent to parking where a landscape buffer separates walkways from surface parking.

He said the area’s overall multifamily cap of 2,000 units would not be raised by these amendments. Jonathan also said the amendments would permit up to 720 multifamily units in Subarea 3 without the prior requirement that a given amount of commercial space be developed first.

On site-plan and circulation changes, Jonathan reviewed exhibit revisions by subarea: Subarea 1 (along Business 121) shifts toward smaller building pads and structured parking rather than large surface lots; Subarea 2 was amended to allow a grocery or big‑box anchor and associated surface parking; and Subarea 3 (the highway frontage) shows smaller building footprints and layout changes. He noted the package adds pedestrian connections linking parking areas to new destinations and introduces a proposed 82‑foot right‑of‑way cross section designed to accommodate an amenity zone, sidewalk and utility easements.

At the public hearing the commission heard from Marissa Brewer, who identified herself as “a planner with McAdams” representing the applicant (Bridal Realty) and said she was available to answer questions. With no additional public speakers, the commission moved to action.

For the text‑amendment item, a motion to recommend approval was made and recorded as moved by Joshua with a second by Jack; the motion carried, 7–0. For the concept‑plan/exhibit item, a motion to recommend approval was made and recorded as moved by Aram with a second by Rick; that motion also carried, 7–0. The Chair announced both matters will go to city council for a second public hearing and a final decision on April 6, 2026, at 7:00 p.m.

The meeting ended with a brief announcement introducing new Planning Manager Vashile Fernandez, who the commission was told had joined the department from Texarkana about three weeks earlier. The commission adjourned following routine motions.