By N. Bradford
To the dismay of nearby residents, Pearland’s Planning and Zoning Commission on Monday voted to support a requested rezone of a lot in the city’s Old Townsite.
The owner of 2430 South Austin Avenue is requesting a zone change from residential to mixed-use. That request will be decided by Pearland City Council, but the council does take Planning and Zoning’s recommendations into consideration.
“This is an application for a zone change that would increase some of the use that could go in that land,” P&Z Commissioner Ashlee Boswell said. “It’s already zoned residential, so this isn’t a situation where we’re able to control what comes in there.”
“I don’t know that it would be vacant land forever,” she added.
Applicant Tessie Gurley said her family purchased the property in 2019.
“I feel like it’s a historic home, and I’m really just trying to preserve that,” she said. “I’m proposing an office or something like that. I feel like it’s historical enough it needs to be kept.”
Several nearby property owners addressed the commission Monday.
“My concern is if somebody is going to build something like townhomes or condominiums, I’ve already flooded twice,” said nearby property owner Richard Wheeler. “Leave it like it is, Old Town Pearland.”
Potential flooding was high on their list of concerns, along with cut-through traffic, crime and congestion.
“It’s a field that’s flooded for years,” said Meaghan Cobbs.
The property was developed as a home site in 1938 and annexed into the city in 1960.
Since the site is already zoned as residential, building on it within the zoning limits is something that the owner can do by right, Commissioner Derrell Isenberg said.
“As far as having the ability to avoid anything ever being built on there, that’s not realistic,” he said. “From what the owner said, all they’re wanting to do is fix it up and make it useful.”
Also on Monday, the commission addressed a request to rezone two acres on Pearland Parkway from single family to general business — issuing a recommendation not for general business, but a less intense and more limiting zoning called neighborhood services.
“Not everybody is going to be happy, but you buy a piece of property, and you have a right to within reason to sell that piece of property,” Isenberg said.
Residents whose homes are located near the property, 3888 Pearland Parkway, expressed objections to more traffic and congestion that a retail center would bring to their street.
Justin Barnett of R. West Development said the property has been zoned residential and listed as such for 23 years.
“We’ve never had a builder or anybody ever interested in building residential,” he said. “It wouldn’t work there because of the size and shape.”
The commission voted to forward a recommendation for a conditional use permit that would allow construction of a gas station at 4109 Manvel Road, adding conditions that include an 8-foot fence.
Planning and Zoning action along with conditions and notes are forwarded to Pearland City Council to decide requests at a future meeting.
