Commission recommends CDO changes to regulate group homes, event centers and battery/data facilities

The Fulshear Planning and Zoning Commission voted on May 1 to recommend approval of ordinance 2026-1526, a coordinated development ordinance update that adds conditional and specific-use regulations for group homes and transitional living facilities, creates a separate specific-use category for event centers, and places stringent conditions on battery energy storage systems (BESS) and data centers.

Staff told the commission the package responds to uses that are increasingly appearing in the area and aims to balance residents’ concerns with compliance with state and federal law. Key proposed requirements for group homes include listing them as conditional uses in residential districts, requiring a conditional use permit and a certificate of occupancy, submission of the state license to the city, inspections and a Type B buffer yard (opaque fence/wall) along single-family property lines. The draft also proposes a minimum separation of 2,500 feet between group homes or transitional living facilities.

Public commenters identified themselves and urged stronger protections. Dawn Prophet, a neighbor at 4210 Lee Lane, said repeated police responses and several violent incidents at a nearby residential treatment center have caused fear, anxiety and a sense that home values will decline. Kathy Ward, a 28-year resident, said the facility at issue 'is not a group home' as commonly defined and flagged broken windows, parking chaos and roughly 30 police calls since mid-July. Both speakers urged stricter distance or operational limits.

Commissioners asked detailed questions about enforcement and oversight. Staff said parking-on-paved-surface requirements and other conditions would be enforced through zoning/code compliance and property-maintenance updates; repeat violators could face expedited summons procedures. Staff also said the city cannot set arbitrary caps that conflict with state licensing and that some operational caps (for beds or staff ratios) remain within the state’s authority; the city would, however, require documentation of state licenses as part of permitting and said staff can periodically verify licenses.

On event centers, staff proposed removing event facilities from the 'place of assembly' classification (which enjoys stronger state protections) and treating commercial event centers as specific uses in the Estate Residential district; the changes would require site plans, elevations and public notification for neighbors within 200 feet. Staff said the city can act if an event creates nuisances such as traffic, noise or unpermitted post-event activities.

For BESS and data centers, staff proposed allowing these only as specific uses in general commercial and industrial districts, and enumerated strict conditions: water-reclamation targets (staff cited a 75% target), 20-foot landscape buffers and opaque walls able to withstand a blast-door impact, 50% of the site as pervious landscaped area, setbacks (not within 200 feet of single-family zones or schools), noise studies within 500 feet, plume analysis and site-monitoring for thermal runaway, prominent emergency signage, and a requirement to restore the site on decommissioning. Commissioners noted that some technical targets (for example, reclaiming 75% of evaporative cooling losses) could be impractical and likely deter in-city proposals.

A commissioner moved to recommend approval of the ordinance package; another seconded, and Chair recorded the motion as approved with one abstention noted. The package now goes to City Council on May 19, 2026.

Next steps: staff will finalize ordinance language and consider additional conditions if the council or commission requests further protections.