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Developer offers lower‑density alternative for Sawyer Road PD; council urges safety fixes and asks for revised site plan
Summary
A developer seeking to amend a 2025 PD at 6612–6618 Sawyer Road proposed a lower‑density single‑family "garden home" option to replace previously approved townhomes. Council and the city engineer raised safety concerns about driveway access onto Sawyer and asked for revised plans and more engineering input before a final vote.
A developer returned to the Leon Valley City Council May 5 seeking to amend a previously approved plan-development district for about 6.8 acres on Sawyer Road and asked council to allow a lower‑density alternative rather than the 160+ townhomes originally approved.
Planning & Zoning Director Michael Gallardo summarized the requested variances for a PD amendment, including smaller lots, reduced setbacks and narrower internal street widths. Gallardo said staff recommends the project follow the city’s tree preservation and mitigation process, limit driveway access from residential lots onto Sawyer Road, and require council approval for any unit increase above 10 percent of the submitted site plan.
Developer Sameer Shahadi told the council his team re‑evaluated the project after market and financing analysis. "We were here before you last year saying we're going to build this to sell. We never said we're going to build this to rent," Shahadi said. He described a proposed single‑family "garden home" option with roughly 76 lots that he said would lower density and decrease the likelihood of conversion to rental apartments, and asked council to permit a second site‑plan option so the developer can continue financial analysis without losing current zoning rights.
City engineering staff and the city engineer advised caution on providing direct driveway access for the 18 lots that would front Sawyer Road. "By definition, a collector is a street that connects local roads to a major thoroughfare," the city engineer said, and staff noted a collector designation affects safety and access decisions; staff recommended no residential driveways onto the Sawyer frontage for the homes that face that street.
Residents who live near the site reiterated traffic and sight‑line concerns at a blind curve on Sawyer and asked that the developer preserve trees and provide usable parkland. The developer said he is willing to remove some lots and add more open space and detention area to provide play area and reduce tree impacts.
Councilmembers asked for follow‑up engineering work and suggested design options including a reduced number of driveways, a short access spur, relocation of some units, or improved guest parking to avoid on‑street parking on Sawyer. Council did not take a final vote; it directed staff and the developer to work on revised plans and engineering responses and return to a future meeting for the required public hearing and any final action.
Next steps: the developer said he will provide a revised site plan and cost estimates within days; staff will review engineering changes and report back to council before the next reading and public hearing.
