On Sept. 18, the City Plan and Zoning Commission unanimously recommended approval for a zoning change request from the San Antonio-based grocery chain. H-E-B had asked the city to rezone a lot on the corner of Hillcrest Road and I-635, the proposed location for Dallas’ first of the company’s flagship brand. The roughly 10-acre area is currently zoned as a Neighborhood Office District, but a change to a Regional Retail District would allow the company to build its proposed full-service store and pharmacy on the site.

The company has had a presence in Dallas since it opened a Central Market on Lovers Lane in 2002, and H-E-B’s Benjamin Scott told commissioners at the meeting that the company is “very excited to expand (their) relationship with the City of Dallas.” In recent years, the grocer has steadily added locations in North Texas with new stores in Frisco and Plano and another that opened Oct. 29 in Rockwall.

According to H-E-B’s Suzan Kedron, the company began collecting community feedback on the proposed store in October 2024. There were meetings with businesses adjacent to the site and the District 11 office. An additional three areawide neighborhood meetings were held — each drawing over 100 attendees.

In response to what neighbors expressed at the meetings, H-E-B developed a list of voluntary deed restrictions limiting what could be built on the site, including pawn shops, auto service centers, bus stations, funeral homes and commercial amusements.

There is little doubt that Dallasites want an H-E-B in their city, but the question of where and how has stirred debate among some neighbors.

A number of supporters came before the commission, lauding the company’s reputation for being a good neighbor.

“They’re good to their employees, and they’re really good for the community. I mean, they make a difference,” said Grey Stogner, who works in an office adjacent to the proposed site. “This is a huge win for Dallas, huge win for the neighborhood.”

Greg Anderson called in from Houston, sharing his experiences with having an H-E-B in his neighborhood.

“It’s not just a grocery store. It’s a proven community anchor. I mean, they just do amazing things all over Austin, and they’re excited to do the same for your city,” he said.

A number of the plan’s opponents, however, voiced concerns over the store’s compatibility with the surrounding area and how the increase in traffic will affect the neighborhood. Representing Shelby Management LLC, which owns property just south of the site, Chris Bowers asked the commission to delay the case by four weeks so the community could address issues he said were overlooked in the traffic analysis done by H-E-B. He argued that the study did not account for the popularity of H-E-B, citing the large crowds seen at the Plano location.

Others echoed these concerns. Hillcrest Forest Neighborhood Association Vice President Kristen Malmberg read a letter from the association’s president Bruce Wilke, a former plan commission chair, asking for more time to review traffic data.

Kathy Coffman with the Hillcrest Preservation Coalition said, “We all respected H-E-B’s reputation as a quality grocer, but the proposal at LBJ and Hillcrest is not the same H-E-B model that other Texas communities enjoy,” noting that most H-E-B stores are built on lots around twice the size.

Despite those neighbors in opposition, the commission recommended approval for the project with the added deed restrictions, which still must be approved by City Council.

Countering traffic concerns, the City’s Director of Transportation and Public Works Gus Khankarli spoke at the meeting. Khankarli said he has been studying this particular intersection for years and believes that updating signal equipment and adding a right turn lane from Hillcrest Road onto the I-635 feeder road would increase traffic throughput, even with the added traffic H-E-B would bring.

District 11 Commissioner Mike Sims compared the site to the intersection between Midway Road and I-635, which sports a Walmart Supercenter and Sam’s Club, saying traffic flows smoothly there despite heavier use.

Explaining his vote to recommend approval, District 10 Commissioner Tipton Housewright said H-E-B was a clear choice for the proposed site.

“If we can’t put the best grocery retailer in the state of Texas on an interstate highway in Dallas, I don’t know where we can put it,” he said.

Sims said the addition of the H-E-B to the neighborhood will serve to reinforce Dallas’ role as an anchor city for the Metroplex by continuing to make it a place where people want to live and work.

“If we think about the history of Dallas, the only thing that has been unchanged is that Dallas changes,” he said.