Arlington council to consider new townhome development next to gas drilling site
The Arlington City Council will review a request Tuesday night to rezone land for a townhome development on the southeast side of the city — and adjacent to a gas drilling site and an electrical substation.
Taylor Morrison Inc., an Arizona-based developer, is requesting approval to rezone a roughly 29-acre site at 1120 Debbie Lane and 8380 Glenn Day Drive to build 170 townhomes and two quick-service restaurants. The development would be called Yardly Loretta Day.
The Glenn Day Drive address is the location of a gas drilling site that was originally approved in 2006. Between 2006 and 2008, Arlington approved multiple wells on the site, but there had not been a request for additional drilling permits in over a decade, according to city staff reports.
That changed on April 21, when then the City Council gave final approval for a request from the operator of the well, Total E&P Barnett USA LLC, to draw a new boundary that places three well sites slightly more than the 600-foot “protected use” requirement for drilling zones in Arlington.
Those “protected uses” include residences, religious institutions, hospitals, medical and dental buildings, care and supervised living facilities, schools, daycares, and public parks.
On April 15, the Planning and Zoning Commission voted to approve the rezoning for the townhome development with several provisions related to pedestrian safety, and the aesthetics of the townhomes.
At that meeting, commissioner Linda Finley said that she did not support the townhomes being built next to the gas wells.
“I do not want to see homes built as close as they’re wanting to build near the gas well,” Finley said.
Commissioners also expressed concerns at the meeting that the townhomes were too monotonous.
According to a city staff report, the developer has not submitted updated site plans with those changes made.
In January, the Arlington City Council also approved a request from Total E&P Barnett to create a new gas well site and drill zone at 2020 S. Watson Road. Over a dozen residents spoke against the proposal.
The Arlington City Council will meet at 6:30 p.m. May 5 in the City Council chambers, 101 South Center St.
