A rental townhome community of up to 225 homes is proposed for a vacant 22.9-acre tract on the north side of Eldorado Parkway at Hillside Beach Drive, a site town planners describe as one of the last empty properties in the Lakefront District.
The Little Elm Planning & Zoning Commission holds a public hearing on the request, from developer Zeal and engineering firm Kimley-Horn, on Thursday, Nov. 19. The Town Council is scheduled to take it up Dec. 15. Staff recommend approval.
The land is zoned Lakefront District today. Zeal wants a planned development based on that district, with changed standards that would allow a mix of townhome sizes and styles at about 9.75 homes per acre.
Up to two acres could instead be built out under regular Lakefront District rules, which staff say leaves room for commercial space nearer to the mix of uses envisioned in the town's Lakefront District Small Area Plan.
What would change
The plan asks for a long list of exceptions, including:
- Smaller lot widths and depths, with the townhomes allowed on a single lot rather than platted individually.
- Rear-entry, two-car garages for the homes facing Eldorado Parkway, but a mix of front- and rear-entry homes with one- or two-car garages farther inside the site.
- Curbside parallel parking counted toward each home's parking requirement.
- Narrower streets, less landscaping, artificial turf, a lower roof pitch and fewer masonry requirements.
- A waiver of tree mitigation. The site plan removes 276 trees totaling about 3,244 caliper inches, which would normally mean $275,350 in fees. Zeal proposes new canopy and ornamental trees, shrubs and landscaped entries instead.
The plan shows about 3.2 acres of open space, above the 2.3-acre minimum, with ponds, sidewalks and shared amenities kept up by a property management company. An 8-foot board-on-board wood fence with masonry columns would separate the townhomes from the Lakewood Estates homes to the north.
