A LongHorn Steakhouse is working its way through Little Elm's permitting process for a site in Bates Towne Crossing, the shopping center taking shape on US 380 at Ryan Spiritas Parkway, according to a town staff report.
The restaurant "is one of several new businesses coming to" the development at 26580 E. University Drive, planning staff wrote, and construction is expected to begin once the needed permits are approved. The report gives no opening date.
Two requests before planners
The restaurant's lot came before the Planning and Zoning Commission on Thursday, Oct. 1, in two items.
The first was a replat of about 1.87 acres, filed by CDS Development for owner Bates Towne Crossing LLC, to create one lot and dedicate easements for site work. Staff recommended approval with one condition about a document reference before the plat is recorded with Denton County.
The second was a sign variance. Town code allows up to 200 square feet of wall signs per building or tenant. The request sought 292.24 square feet across the building's four sides: a 63.21-square-foot name sign on each facade plus a 19.7-square-foot steer logo on the north and east sides.
Staff did not recommend for or against it, pointing commissioners to an earlier variance for a Chili's in the same center that, with two wall murals, totaled about 362.7 square feet. On sign variances the commission acts as the town's sign-control board, and its decisions can be appealed to the Town Council.
The town had not posted the commission's actions from that meeting online as of Sunday.
