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Council sends Laughlin Farms rezoning back to the table after residents press concerns about density and infrastructure
Summary
After a lengthy presentation by the developer and more than an hour of public comment, the City of Rockwall council voted to deny without prejudice a rezoning request for the 536-acre Laughlin Farms development, sending the applicant back to negotiate further with neighbors over lot sizes, buffers and infrastructure timing.
Mayor Trace Johannesson opened a public hearing on Oct. 21 over Z2024‑048, a request to rezone a 536.4297‑acre Laughlin Farms tract from agricultural to a planned development to allow 885 single‑family lots and about 41 acres of general retail. City planner Ryan Miller told the council the revised plan reduces the number of small lots and that Planning & Zoning recommended approval 5–1.
Developer Ryan Joyce, representing Michael Joyce Properties in partnership with Qualico, told the council the latest submission cuts the smallest 62‑foot lots by roughly 30 percent, increases 82‑ to 100‑foot lots, and adds tree‑preservation easements, berms and expanded amenity sites. "We started at 2.36 units per acre and are now at 1.65 — well…
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