Fort Worth considers land use change to protect Basswood Elementary from motel project
Fort Worth could change the land use rules that cleared the way for a motel project opposed by parents at Basswood Elementary School.
The City Council is considering changing the zoning for a 32-acre area bounded by Basswood Boulevard to the north, Sandshell Boulevard to the east, Corrine Drive to the south, and the Interstate 35W frontage road to the west, according to city documents.
The Keller school district built Basswood Elementary in 2007 at a time when most of the land in the area was vacant, save for a pair of auto-body shops and a Home Depot.
While the city of Fort Worth’s future plans have the area slated for a mix of residential and commercial uses, right now the most of the land is zoned “light industrial,” which allows for uses like animal hospitals, warehouses and batch plants.
The rules would change the largely industrially zoned area to neighborhood commercial, limiting land uses to businesses like barbershops, banks, restaurants and drug stores, according to city zoning rules.
There would be exceptions for the Home Depot and car wash to allow those businesses to continue operating without running afoul of city zoning rules.
The changes were initiated by council member Charlie Lauersdorf, whose district includes Basswood Elementary.
Parents at the school expressed concerns at a contentious February town hall meeting that a Super 6 extended stay motel under construction would bring crime and put their children’s safety at risk.
The motel, at 3044 Clay Mountain Trail, would have been 400 feet from Basswood Elementary.
Dev Surati, who owns Sanger-based developer Basswood Investments LLC., told the audience gathered at the town hall meeting he would pause construction to continue discussions with the city and the school district about the project.
Parents and officials with the Keller school district accused the city of not providing enough notice before an October 2023 zoning change that allowed for the motel to be built in the first place.
The Keller school board voted in April to authorize the use of eminent domain to purchase the property from Sanger-based developer Basswood Investments LLC.
Records with the Tarrant Appraisal District show Basswood Investments LLC still owns the property and neither the developer nor the school district responded to requests for comment.
The council will vote on the zoning change at its 10 a.m. meeting on Aug. 27.
This story was originally published August 20, 2024 at 2:09 PM.
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