Van Alstyne directs staff to prepare ordinance for 69‑acre 'Landing' PD despite residents' drainage concerns

Van Alstyne’s City Council on July 14 directed staff to prepare a planned‑development (PD) ordinance for a 69.2‑acre development known as “The Landing,” which would allow retail, pad‑site commercial uses and up to 280 multifamily units on a 10.8‑acre subarea.

The council’s direction — described by a council member as "as presented tonight" and approved in a 4–1 vote — follows a staff presentation of the PD framework and a detailed developer presentation by Jackie Wolpert of United Commercial Development. Wolpert described three subareas: Sub‑area A tailored to big‑box retail with masonry and open‑space requirements; Sub‑area B for pad sites and multi‑tenant buildings with limits on drive‑throughs; and Sub‑area C, where the developer is requesting 280 multifamily units rather than the Planning & Zoning recommendation of 250.

Why it matters: proponents say the mixed retail and residential project will generate sales tax and new housing options near downtown and major roadways; opponents and nearby homeowners say the scale and off‑site impacts — especially drainage and erosion — have not been adequately addressed and could damage existing properties.

Developer and staff details

Jackie Wolpert said the PD would include enhanced architectural standards and screening for outdoor storage and that the development team had negotiated several changes from Planning & Zoning recommendations. The developer asked to reduce a required 20‑foot landscape buffer for sit‑down restaurants to 10 feet on certain pad sites to accommodate parking and requested larger temporary outdoor sales areas (5,000 sq ft requested vs. 2,700 sq ft recommended by P&Z). Wolpert said the multifamily product is intended to be market‑rate and "we're not asking for Section 8 housing." She said traffic modeling shows the 280‑unit plan would generate about 1,700 average weekday trips, comparable to a ~32,000 sq ft retail building.

Engineering and neighbors’ concerns

Ryan Hartman, a licensed professional engineer and head of hydrology at Spires Engineering, told the council the project team modeled upstream and downstream watershed conditions and proposed two detention ponds and staged outfalls designed to reduce peak flows at the site’s point of discharge and through the downstream zone of influence. “Our goal is to size these ponds so that they’ve got staged outfalls so that we're decreasing in each of those,” he said.

Neighbors who live immediately downstream in Dobbins Estates and on West Marshall testified that recent development on the east side of US‑75 increased flows and accelerated erosion. Sharon Gentry, who lives on White Oak Drive, said she has tracked changes since 2000 and told council that "a little over 2 inches will do it today" to overtop a private low‑water bridge that previously held at around six inches. Barbara Bianchi told council that three properties on her block would need more than $1,000,000 of work to address erosion and urged the city to require stronger mitigation and transparency on any release forms the city asks property owners to sign.

Council deliberation and next steps

Council members debated consistency with the city’s comprehensive plan, fiscal impact modeling and traffic and parking standards. One council member emphasized the need for new housing and sales tax revenue to support municipal services; others pressed for assurances on drainage and on third‑party review. After discussion, council directed staff to prepare the PD ordinance reflecting the changes presented that evening, subject to a development agreement to be returned for future approval. The motion passed 4–1.

The council vote directs staff to draft the ordinance and return it for formal consideration; Planning & Zoning will continue its role reviewing site plans and conditions tied to the PD.