Richardson City Council is on track to approve updates to city zoning and regulation ordinances in response to state legislative changes.

Andrew Bogda, Richardson’s assistant director of development services, presented updates to zoning protest criteria, housing occupancy restrictions, and flag and flagpole regulations to council April 6. Bogda said the changes are routine updates as a result of new statewide legislation adopted by the Texas Legislature last year.

Breaking it down

Bogda presented updates to the requirements around zoning protests and rezoning requests in Richardson’s comprehensive zoning ordinance.

Prior to the new legislation, objections from property owners comprising 20% of a subject property requesting a zoning change or within a 200-foot range of the property could trigger a requirement for a supermajority vote to approve the rezoning request.

The legislative changes increase the property owner threshold to 60% for any rezoning requests that allow for more residential development, and also allow for a simple majority vote to approve residential requests rather than a supermajority.

Bogda said the legislation aims to facilitate the development of more residential housing. All other nonresidential rezoning requests, such as commercial or industrial properties, will maintain the 20% protest threshold.

A closer look

Richardson’s code of ordinance currently regulates the size and quantity of corporate logo flags but does not contain regulations concerning the total number of flags or flagpoles, flagpole heights and setbacks, or sizes for any flags other than corporate logo flags.

The new regulations will introduce quantity, height, size and location restrictions, with different regulations for residential and nonresidential areas.

A maximum of three flags and flagpoles are permitted for most lots, but nonresidential properties over 10 acres that contain at least two street frontages will be allowed up to six flags. The ordinance will require a 25-foot maximum height in residential districts and a 40-foot maximum height in nonresidential and mixed-use districts. Flags in residential districts will also be limited to 25 square feet while nonresidential flags can be up to 40 square feet.

The ordinance will also require a permit for any flagpoles greater than 25 feet in height.

Also of note

Richardson will also adjust its definition of “family” in its zoning ordinance to no longer restrict the number of occupants in a housing unit based on familial relations.

What’s next

City Council will approve the formal code amendments in a future meeting.