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Applicant seeks to postpone public hearing on Princeton Office Building rezoning after notice; staff recommends denial
Summary
Staff told the Planning and Zoning Commission the applicant for the Princeton Office Building requested an indefinite postponement after the packet published; staff nonetheless presented the rezoning as noticed and recommended denial. The property spans Addison and Farmers Branch and would total about 535 multifamily units if approved.
Leslie, a planning staff member, told the Planning and Zoning Commission during a work session that the applicant for the Princeton Office Building has asked to postpone its rezoning request indefinitely but that the item must proceed as noticed because the public hearing was published.
Staff said the application would rezone the property from plan development for office uses to a plan development for a multifamily project. Leslie said Farmers Branch has granted entitlements for the Farmers Branch portion — 135 multifamily units atop an existing five‑story parking garage — while the Addison side currently lacks entitlements and would account for roughly 400 multifamily units, for a combined total near 535 units.
Leslie described the site as a unique, split property with an existing office building of about 375,000 square feet and a roughly 60,000‑square‑foot floor plate. The parcel has a private parking agreement linking the office building to a five‑story parking garage on the Farmers Branch side. The redevelopment would take access from the Dallas North Tollway and Landmark Boulevard/Inwood Road, and staff said that arrangement and the split jurisdiction make the proposal unusual for Addison.
Staff told commissioners that the project will require substantial tree removal; less than half of the removed trees can be mitigated on site and the applicant proposes to pay about $116,000 into the tree mitigation fund to cover the remainder. The applicant also submitted a packet including 15 letters of support, two from properties inside the notice boundary and 13 from surrounding property owners and tenants in Addison, Farmers Branch and Dallas.
Commissioners discussed whether office or higher‑quality office development remains feasible at the site. One commissioner said the town’s 2013 comprehensive plan favors higher‑quality office and mixed‑use redevelopment and cited the Spectrum Center investment as an example where a large investment changed tenant mix. That commissioner said multifamily ‘‘could work in the long run’’ but suggested mixed use would better serve the area by reducing driving demand.
Leslie said the applicant purchased the property out of foreclosure in the last few years and originally proposed fee‑simple condominiums before pivoting to multifamily when condos proved financially unviable. Staff reiterated its recommendation of denial based on the application materials and the site’s context. Because the public hearing was noticed, staff said it will proceed with the presentation at the regular meeting and the applicant’s materials are already posted to commissioners’ OneDrive.
No formal action or vote occurred during the work session; staff said the full presentation and any public testimony will take place during the regular meeting as required by the published notice.
