Zoning commissioners on Tuesday heard nearly two hours of opposition to a rezoning request before voting in favor of a plan that paves the way for luxury townhomes on an 11-acre property in Northwest San Antonio.
Located in the 7500 block of Prue Road north of Leon Valley, the property is owned by investor group Parkview at Prue LLC, but neighbors have treated the oak-studded tract as an extension of a nearby park.
The group wants to build a 56-unit project on the parcel of land between the Prue Bend and Oak Bluff neighborhoods and south of the Leon Creek Greenway trailhead.
With a portion of the property in the 100-year floodplain and situated adjacent to O.P. Schabel Park, plans call for preserving 4 acres next to the park.
If approved by City Council, the land will go from residential single-family R-6 to Planned Unit Development R-5, which allows for more density. Neighbors have rallied against the change ever since last year when rezoning signs were posted at the property.
Its well-developed paths, shaded by mature trees, trail seamlessly into the park. Massive limestone boulders, rugged slopes and steep cliffs offer both panoramic vistas and support runoff in the area.
“I grew up in the area and I’ve been hiking at this spot for 20 years — I just found out it was private property a few months ago,” said Hunter Warren, one of about 20 people who spoke against the rezoning at the hearing during which another 21 voicemail messages in opposition were heard.
Three neighborhood association groups in the area also opposed the rezoning, according to a city staffer, as did another neighborhood group just outside the 200-feet notification zone. Of the 57 notices sent out, 40 were returned in opposition and none in favor.
Speaking at the hearing, residents took turns outlining their reasons for wanting to keep the property from being densely developed.
Those reasons included worsening traffic safety on Prue Road, impacts on the environment and the Edwards Aquifer, concerns about drainage and ground stability and encroachment on homeowner privacy.
“It’s also very possible that this land is serving as a natural retaining wall for both Prue Bend and Oak Bluff and that , with excavation and significant changes, the two subdivisions are looking at not only worsening of current foundation issues, but also landslides and a similar of the Hills of River Mist neighborhood,” said Prue Bend resident Marc Jablonski.
Representatives from nonprofits River Aid San Antonio and the Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance supported the residents’ concerns about how the property, as a transition zone, helps to sustain the aquifer recharge zone and asked commissioners to deny the request.
While the developer’s representatives have met with neighbors to discuss the plans, they have not fully addressed all their concerns, said resident Josh Arrington.
“We are all here because we’re in opposition to this — not because we’re anti-development, not because we don’t want the nuisance or want people behind us — but because we care for environmental justice, because we care for the safety of our children and our lives and ourselves, because we care for the investments we’ve made in our properties,” Arrington said.
He asked for a traffic study and other environmental impact and engineering studies to be done, and the rezoning request to be postponed until those are completed.
Another resident asked for the case to be delayed until after the May elections. Last year, redistricting moved the Prue Road area from District 8 to District 7. In early March, the Council selected Rosie Castro as an interim District 7 representative after Councilwoman Ana Sandoval resigned in January.
“It’s definitely frustrating that we’re put in a position where our vote literally doesn’t count,” said Kristen Rothstein. “We normally would have the power of our voice, to have leverage on our representatives to get them to focus more on what the people are asking for, instead of what big business is trying to do.”
Ashley Farrimond, an attorney representing the developers, said the requested rezoning is a good option for the land given the terrain because it forces the density to be clustered near the front entrance of the property.
The owners have hired a geotechnical firm to conduct a soil study with the results due in three to four weeks, she said, adding that information will be shared with neighborhood residents.
Another study analyzing the proposed development’s traffic impact will be done during building permitting and engineering stages, Farrimond said.
That information will ultimately dictate development parameters, said Emilie Weissler, director of land use and development at the law firm Killen, Griffin & Farrimond.
City staff reminded zoning commissioners that, despite any concerns they have with the environment or traffic safety, they are charged with making decisions on land use and zoning only.
As the case goes through the development process, platting will be required and an environmentally sensitive area evaluation will be done, said Melissa Ramirez, assistant director of land development for the City of San Antonio.
She added that the developer will be required to submit a habitat compliance form, which the city provides to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for evaluation. If a retaining wall is needed for the development, a review and inspection will be done.
“And if there are steep slopes identified of 20% or greater, then they will have to comply with our regulations,” she said.
Those regulations could result in fewer units being built on the property.
Commissioner Robert Sipes saw rezoning as a compromise, “where we can protect more of the natural habitat in its natural state and still accomplish essentially low-density development,” he said.
“This land will be developed,” said Commissioner Osvaldo Ortiz, acknowledging that the owner is willing to set aside some of the land and must also comply with city development and other agency regulations.
Commissioner Taylor Watson said she believed the new zoning would leave more impervious cover available.
“And if there is an untenable construction situation that emerges with these the proposed site plan and project … that will be an opportunity that we can’t necessarily govern or consider in our recommendation as a Zoning Commission,” she said. “So I think this is the best possible outcome that we can get for the community that reflects your concerns.”
Commissioners voted unanimously for rezoning, with Michelle Lugalia-Hollon abstaining.
After months of campaigning with her neighbors against the zoning change, Rothstein was disappointed in the vote.
“I know that it’s the Zoning Commission and … it’s not their swim lane,” she said. “But it was still difficult to sit there and listen to everyone provide strong evidence,” especially her neighbors who work as environmental scientists and geologists who said, “This is not buildable land.”
The neighbors plan to take their arguments to council members ahead of their scheduled vote in May and also work to ensure the 4 acres of preserved land is put into a conservation easement.
But she worries that the opposition group is being stereotyped as NIMBY homeowners and their concerns will be overlooked for that reason.
“In our case, we do believe that we are different,” she said. “We’re trying to bring light to this theory of issues with the environment here and we’re not just talking about the birds and the foxes and all that.
“We’re not whining, we’re warning you. … This is not a good space for development.”
Disclosure: Zoning Commissioner Michelle Lugalia-Hollon is a member of the San Antonio Report’s board of directors.
