Addison Residents Oppose Sam’s Club
Re-Development Plans

Addison Residents Oppose
Sam’s Club Re-Development Plans

Nearly 100 Addison residents filled Town Hall to overflowing Tuesday night, Dec. 15, to register their opposition to the proposed redevelopment of the former Sam’s Club property at 4150 Belt Line Road with the Addison Planning & Zoning Commission.

Numerous residents spoke against the project during the public hearing, including four former city council members and the former city manager. Other residents registered their opposition to the rezoning in writing. The proposal called for 331 rental units and 17 live/work units in five-story buildings and 161 three-story town homes with 20,078 feet of retail space.

The opposition centered on two issues. The first was a proposed street that would lead from the development onto Beltway Drive. Residents were uniformly opposed to this new access, citing increased traffic concerns since parking on the new site was designed to accommodate over 1,000 cars. Others were concerned that traffic would cut through the development from Beltline Road to Beltway Drive. Second, many residents opposed the removal of a wall that currently separates the site from the residential neighborhoods along Beltway Drive, citing promises made to them when the original Sam’s site was developed.

The conclusion of the meeting was likewise not without controversy. The Planning & Zoning Commission voted 4-3 to approve an amendment to a motion made to approve the proposal. However, when Chairman Skip Robbins tried to take a vote on the underlying motion, Addison’s attorney, Brenda McDonald stopped him, stating: “The amendment passed, so that is the prevailing recommendation of the commission.”

Many in attendance, including several former councilmembers, left believing that no action had been taken on the underlying motion. As amended, the underlying motion recommended approval of the plan to the City Council with the following conditions/amendments: (1) A special use permit would be required for any medical or dental offices; (2) Construction of the town homes would have to be completed before the wall could be removed; (3) 50% of the 180 townhomes would have to be completed before construction could begin on the apartment/retail component; and (4), the proposed roadway intersecting with Beltway Drive would be changed from a street to pedestrian access only.

The City Council is scheduled to hold a public hearing on the proposed re-zoning at their regular meeting on January 12, although that may change if P&Z actually did not vote on the motion.