Developer and council spar over prolonged permit delays, drainage issues at two Lago Vista building sites

Pandora Homes and its contractor pressed the Lago Vista City Council during a work‑session discussion about prolonged permitting delays that have stalled construction on two projects for more than a year. The builder said repeated rounds of new comments and stop‑work actions by successive staff led to mounting carrying costs and frustration; staff and public‑works engineers said outstanding drainage design and culvert/driveway mitigation issues must be resolved before construction can continue.

Developer representatives described multiple rounds of reviews, a history of earlier city approvals under prior staff, and, more recently, new technical requests tied to drainage calculations and grading that remain incomplete in plan sets. The contractor said he has paid extension and permit fees multiple times and requested that the city refund extension fees paid after the permitting irregularities and provide a clear restart path: consolidate previously paid fees into an account, start review anew as if the application were fresh, and then fast‑track reviews once plan sets include the required drainage and engineered information.

City staff acknowledged the file is “messy,” noted long-standing drainage comments in the record and said current policy requires drainage plans that show channels and calculations within the submitted plan set. Victor (public works) reviewed the timeline and said the original drainage submission had a legibility problem and later uploads did not show the proposed driveway and channeling clearly; staff asked for updated, stamped plans that demonstrate how off‑site flows and culvert discharges are handled on‑site. Development Services director Jordan said staff will administratively refund the permit‑extension fees that were charged under the unclear circumstances and offered to prioritize an expedited review path if the developer submits a corrected plan set that meets the city's drainage criteria.

Councilors urged both sides to document outstanding requirements and to proceed with a clean, step‑by‑step restart: staff will list the precise plan revisions and technical items needed to clear outstanding comments, the developer will submit corrected plans and supporting engineering, and staff said it will resume review and work to minimize additional delays. The council did not take formal action but directed staff to pursue the refund and to work with the parties to resolve the matter promptly.