Title
Approving an ordinance on second reading with a caption reading: An Ordinance of the City of Pflugerville, Texas, Amending Title XV, Land Usage, Chapter 157, Unified Development Code, adopted by Ordinance No. 1073-11-04-12 of the City of Pflugerville, Texas, as amended, by repealing and replacing Subchapter 4.4, Corridor Districts (CL3, CL4, CL5); amending Subchapter 9, Architectural, Site Design, and Layout Provisions, creating 9.10 Corridor District Design Standards; amending Subchapter 11, Landscaping and Screening Standards; and amending Subchapter 20, Definitions, as shown in Exhibits A, B, C, and D; to be known as the Corridor District Text Amendments; providing for repeal of conflicting ordinances; providing for severability; and providing for an effective date.
Summary
The proposed text amendments are the same text amendments, with minor modifications for skilled nursing and an additional clarification related to build-to lines, that were considered by City Council in September 2023, which did not obtain the required super majority vote by City Council. City Council has requested the amendments as presented be reconsidered. In preparation for the public hearing on this item, notices were sent out to property owners of land currently zoned CL-3, CL-4, CL-5 and PUD, as well as property owners within 500 feet of those zoning districts, as required by Subchapter 3 of the Unified Development Code. It should be noted that the proposed text amendments do not impact existing single-family homes.
In May 2023, state law changes went into effect in Chapter 211 of Texas Local Government Code, requiring cities to include the following statement in all notices regarding code amendments: “The City of Pflugerville is holding a hearing that will determine whether you may lose the right to continue using your property for its current use. Please read this notice carefully.” The text is required to be bold and in at least a 14-point type. The notice did not provide the clarity needed to properties within the buffer (the area not impacted by the UDC changes) and staff worked with residents and provided additional clarification through meetings, phone calls, online (pflugervilletx.gov/udc) and during the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting held on March 4, 2024.
Staff worked with the consultant, Freese and Nichols, Inc., in 2022 and 2023 to develop the proposed code amendments to the Suburban (Level 3:CL3), Urban (Level 4:CL4), or Urban Center (Level 5:CL5) zoning districts. These districts are commonly identified as the corridor zoning districts and referred to as CL3, CL4, and CL5. The proposed amendments are intended to implement land uses and development standards that were envisioned in the Aspire Pflugerville 2040 Comprehensive Plan. The proposed amendments are only applicable to properties that are zoned or refer to the zoning districts of Suburban (Level 3:CL3), Urban (Level 4:CL4), or Urban Center (Level 5:CL5) which are predominantly located along or in close proximity to SH 130 and SH 45.
Proposed amendments to the land uses, conditions, and their associated development regulations are included in Subchapter 4.4, Corridor Districts (CL3, CL4, CL5); and includes the following changes:
• introduce cottage style housing,
• adjust the multi-family use to establish a neighborhood, suburban, and urban option,
• inclusion of retirement living village,
• adjustment to skilled nursing,
• adjustment of drive thru conditions,
• adjustment to gas station use and conditions to account for electric vehicles, and removal of condominium as a land use.
Amendments to the Subchapters 9, Architectural, Site Design, and Layout; and Subchapter 11, Landscaping and Screening are related to the adjusted land uses and development regulations that are affected by the proposed amendments in Subchapter 4.4, (CL3, CL4, CL5). Finally, the proposed amendments to Subchapter 20 provide definitions for the proposed new land uses, as well as added clarity for existing land uses.
Additionally, in response to the adoption of the Reclaimed Water Master Plan, the proposed amendments include changes in the corridor landscaping requirements related to turf grass to ensure the city is making strides through the development code to promote water conservation.
Proposed amendments are identified through an underline and strikethrough for all subchapters. Subchapter 4.4 will be a repeal and replace, meaning the proposed amendment will replace the existing Subchapter 4.4 related to the corridor districts in the Unified Development Code. For Subchapters 9, 11, and 20, only the items underlined or with a strikethrough are proposed as amendments.
Comprehensive Plan:
The Aspire Pflugerville 2040 Comprehensive Plan was adopted April of 2022, and in that plan there are Six Guiding Principles outlined:
• Diverse and Equitable
• Fiscally Responsible
• Environmentally Sustainable
• Community Oriented
• Safe and Healthy
• Economic Opportunities
The plan provided added housing types to be considered, as well as encouraged multiple non-residential and mixed-use components, including cottage courts, mixed-use neighborhood scale, and mixed-use community scale. The goal of the proposed amendments is to provide a path to some of these new uses/building types that were envisioned by the Aspire Pflugerville 2040 Comprehensive Plan.
Furthermore, there are several goals that were adopted in the comprehensive plan that lend themselves to the proposed amendments.
Housing and Neighborhoods:
1. Diversify the housing supply, types, and locations to meet community needs through each phase of life.
1.1 Encourage housing to support the differing needs of households and changing characteristics.
1.3 Provide programs and regulations to achieve incremental transitions in design and scale between areas of high density and intensity and existing neighborhoods.
1.4 Encourage housing that addresses the needs and desires of employers and targeted industries.
1.5 Create a regulatory ecosystem that encourages and fosters diverse housing choices to fit residents’ needs.
2. Provide homeownership opportunities that encourage residents of diverse backgrounds and housing preferences to make Pflugerville home.
Development Character and Placemaking
3. Foster transit-ready development patterns and combinations of land use that support walkable access to goods, services, entertainment, opportunity, and quality of life while also providing appropriate transitions of intensity and scale between uses.
3.1 Encourage and remove barriers to market-supported mixed-use development. The barriers may be site development requirements, open space, parking, in addition to exclusive zoning.
3.3 Support land use and place type configurations to achieve walkable 10-minute neighborhoods (where daily needs and amenities are within walking distance) throughout the city, allowing high access to goods, services, and opportunities without exclusive reliance on personal automobiles.
4. Develop community character and identity by recognizing and treating key corridors, activity centers, and unique districts to leverage economic opportunity, bolster equity throughout the City, and promote fiscally and environmentally sustainable outcomes, community identity, sense of place, and connectivity.
5. Support resilient development patterns that encourage non-residential and residential developments to adapt and change with market needs and consumer preferences, avoiding future obsolescence.
6. Ensure all neighborhoods have access parks, open space, amenities, and the trail system.
Employment and Commercial Centers
7. Create a land development ecosystem supportive of diverse employment opportunities ranging from small start-ups to Fortune 500 corporations to increase the amount of residents that work in Pflugerville and also elevate the community’s image.
Healthy Communities and Neighborhood Vitality Goals, Policies, and action items
5. Focus on urban design improvements in nodes and major intersections.
5.1. Ensure master plan development corresponds with public and private services, including parks, trails, retail, office, restaurants.
5.2. Avoid concentrations of residential units (any type) without supporting non-residential services.
5.3. Allow for incremental redevelopment of existing commercial centers with residential components.
6. Strategically develop a mixture of residential and nonresidential in greenfield areas.
6.1. Encourage rezoning to residential with an “anchor” feature, service, institution, or jobs generator. If no anchor is present, prioritize commercial or employment development that will not create potential islands of residential.
6.2. Encourage housing variety so that no more than 2/3rds of housing in an area is the same type.
7.Focus on infill areas.
7.2 Encourage multi-family along freeway corridors with access to existing or planned services, jobs, retail, and parks within ¼ mile.
Action items from the Comprehensive Plan that are also supported by these proposed amendments include:
- 3.25.3 - Consider residential use types for smaller format multi-family with 2-4 units on a lot (this is reflected in the CL3 proposed changes);
- 3.27.4 - Establish provisions for public spaces within nonresidential and mixed-use developments, such as outdoor plazas, dining, and activity areas. Such standards should be designed to achieve meaningful, useful, and engaging spaces appealing to users and not be afterthoughts.
- 3.28.17 - Consider transitioning multifamily to conditional by-right use in CL4
- 3.28.18 - Consider increasing by-right density in CL4 and CL5 to the amounts allowed under the current density bonus (60 units/acre and 75 units/acre, respectively). Achieving densities above 40 units/acre generally requires structured parking. 41-75 units per acre typically yields a four-story with central garage structure.
- 3.28.22- Consider increasing density bonus for CL5 to 95 units per acre, which typically yields a five-story with central garage structures or 4-5 story over a podium garage structure.
- 3.30.5 - Identify and develop physical connections between employment center and surrounding neighborhoods.
Strategic Plan:
Staff finds the proposed Zoning Text Amendments meet the Economic and Infrastructure goals of the City's 2021-2025 Strategic Plan, including creating a fiscally-sustainable city with a high quality of life, and preparing robust, resilient infrastructure.
History:
October 25, 2022 - City Council worksession and discussed regarding future adjustments to the Unified Development Code to address SH130 and SH45 development Regulations.
December 13, 2022 - City Council worksession and discussed regarding future adjustments to the Unified Development Code to address SH130 and SH45 development Regulations.
May 1, 2023 - Worksession with Planning & Zoning Commission related to Corridor Code Updates
June 8, 2023 - Proposed amendments were presented to the Development Pforum.
July 25, 2023 - Worksession with City Council to discuss the proposed amendments to the Corridor Districts.
August 7, 2023 - The Planning and Zoning Commission held a public hearing and recommended approval with conditions, which were integrated into the amendments.
August 22, 2023 - City Council conducted a public hearing and postponed action to the September 12, 2023 meeting.
September 12, 2023 - City Council approved postponing action until the September 26, 2023 meeting
September 26, 2023 - City Council did not approve the amendments
In addition to the workshops and meetings, staff also had amendment versions posted on the City website, conducted meetings with multiple stakeholders to discuss the proposed amendments, and made some adjustments based on their feedback. The amendments were added back to the City website in February 2024 with additional information included to help answer questions about the proposed amendments. Additional meetings were requested by several stakeholders to discuss the proposed amendments and provide feedback. An adjustment to the build to line provision was made based on feedback to provide additional flexibility based on unique circumstances.
Notifications:
Email notifications sent:
June 2, 2023 - Notification sent to Development Pforum list regarding the Quarterly Development Pforum.
June 8, 2023 - Notification sent to Development Pforum list reminder about the Quarterly Development Pforum.
June 8, 2023 - Follow up notification was emailed to the Development Pforum email list - included the presentations attached regarding the corridor amendments, as well as a link to the UDC website letting them know the full video of the meeting would be available the following day, as well as the redlines of the code amendments that are proposed. Additionally, there was a signup genius where they could request a meeting with staff.
June 9, 2023 - Website was updated with redlines of the UDC amendments as proposed, added video of the presentation, and a link to request a meeting with signup genius was posted.
August 4, 2023 - Notification was emailed to Development Pforum Group with a list of the proposed code amendments with the public hearing times and the schedule.
August 25, 2023 - Notification was emailed to Development Pforum Group providing details related to proposed action on Sept. 12.
February 26, 2024 - Notification was emailed to Development Pforum Group with the public hearing times and link to the draft amendments.
Mailed Notice -
February 22, 2024 - Mailed notices were sent to all property owners with property zoned CL3, CL4, and CL5, properties zoned Planned Unit Development (PUD) with a base zoning of CL3, CL4, and CL5, and to all property owners within 500’ of those properties. A total of 390 notices were sent to the owners of properties zoned CL3, CL4, CL5 about the two public hearings that are going to be conducted regarding the Zoning Text Amendments. Additionally, 1,466 property owners within the City of Pflugerville who live or have property within the 500’ buffer of a property zoned CL3, CL4, CL5 were notified by mail regarding the two public hearings that are scheduled regarding the proposed amendments.
Published Notice on Website -
February 21, 2024 - the Public Hearing Notice was published on the website, the UDC page was also updated with correlated information.
Published Newspaper Notice -
February 21, 2024 - Newspaper notice was published per state law and appeared in the Pflag, Round Rock Leader, and on the Statesman website.
Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends approval.
Planning and Zoning Commission Action
On March 4, 2024 the Planning and Zoning Commission conducted a public hearing and recommended approval of the proposed ordinance with a vote of 6-0.
Prior City Council Action
The City Council held a public hearing and approved the ordinance on first reading on March 26, 2024.
Funding Expected: Revenue __ Expenditure __ N/A _X_
Budgeted Item: Yes __ No __ N/A _X_
Amount: ________
1295 Form Required? Yes __ No _X_
Legal Review Required: __ Required __ Date Completed: August 8, 2023
Supporting documents attached:
1. Ordinance
2. Exhibit A - Subchapter 4.4, Corridor Districts (CL3, CL4, CL5)
3. Exhibit B - Subchapter 9, Architectural, Site Design and Layout
4. Exhibit C - Subchapter 11, Landscaping and Screening
5. Exhibit D - Subchapter 20, Definitions
6. Map of Corridor Zoned Properties