What to watch: Midland’s Planning and Zoning Commission will meet Monday, Sept. 8, to consider reviving plans for a Grassland Estate West 55-acre mixed-use development that has been idle since its 2021 approval lapsed, new residential lots in the Vista Del Pueblo subdivision, and several zoning changes, including one intended to correct problems created by a 2019 citywide rezoning.

Key points:

  • Grassland Estates West is back: Developer Robert Graham is requesting to reinstate the preliminary plat for Grassland Estates West, a 55-acre mixed-use development near West State Highway 158 and Brandy Hill Road. The plat was originally approved in 2021 but expired before development began. The project calls for 23 commercial lots and 80 residential lots. City staff recommends approval.

In a related consent item, the commissioners will consider restrictive covenants for the residential portion of Grassland Estates West.

  • Vista Del Pueblo subdivision: Midessa Homes is seeking a zoning change for 20 acres near Todd Drive and Marie Drive in the Vista Del Pueblo subdivision. The property is currently zoned Agricultural Estate, and the developer is requesting Country Estate zoning so the proposed roughly 1-acre lots comply with zoning requirements. The developer is also requesting a replat of the entire subdivision.

City staff recommends approval, and no objections were filed.

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  • Fixing a 2019 zoning problem: A property owner at 1806 Willeys Avenue is asking the city to change two lots from multifamily apartment zoning to single-family residential zoning so he can build a home on one lot and sell the other for future residential development.

According to the agenda packet, the properties were rezoned for multifamily development as part of a citywide rezoning in 2019, creating problems for several property owners whose lots do not meet the requirements of that zoning district. City staff recommends returning the two lots to single-family zoning, and no objections were filed.

  • West Wall Street signage: A property owner is requesting a rezoning of the property at 2001 West Wall Street from a transitional planned-development district to a local retail district to install a larger sign. The current planned-development zoning limits signs to four feet in height and 32 square feet in area. City staff recommends approval, and no objections were filed.
  • Development outside the city limits: Commissioners will consider three plats within Midland’s extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ), an area beyond the city limits where Midland retains limited authority over subdivision plats. State law does not require cities to maintain an ETJ, and property owners may petition to have their property removed from it.

One applicant is seeking to divide seven acres near South County Road 1255 and West County Road 116 into two lots for ownership purposes. City staff recommends denial because the applicant has not submitted the required Groundwater Availability Certification.

The other two proposals would create a 2-acre lot for future construction near East County Road 45 and North County Road 1142, and divide 15 acres into two lots near West County Road 52 and North County Road 1255, so that a portion of the property can be sold.

  • Other development: The consent agenda includes eight final plats for residential, commercial, school, and other development around Midland. Among them, Betenbough Homes is seeking to plat 16 acres into 82 lots for the Mockingbird Ridge residential development near Firewheel Road and Eagle Ridge Drive. Another proposal would divide 23 acres into 56 residential lots near Grape Creek and Brennan.

Other plats include combining three lots totaling 15 acres for future commercial development near State Highway 191 and Holdridge Road; creating a 1-acre lot for future retail development near South Lamesa Road and East Hicks Avenue; and combining six existing lots into three near South Fort Worth Street and East Pennsylvania Avenue for future residential construction.

Midland ISD is also seeking to plat 5 acres into one lot for utility improvements at 2000 West Louisiana Avenue. Two smaller plats at 1304 Pratt Street and 108 South Marshall Street are intended to allow future construction or to obtain building permits.