Title
Consider public testimony regarding, and an ordinance zoning 149.34 acres located north of SH 45 and west of CR 172 to the Planned Unit Development (PUD) No. 153 zoning district. (First Reading)*
Body
Background:
Changes to state law between 2017 and 2019 regarding annexation have resulted in municipalities being stripped of their ability to require properties located within the ETJ to annex when requesting city services. The land area included in the city’s Certificate of Convenience and Necessity (CCN) includes all property within the city limits and much of the ETJ, and the city is required to provide utility services to those properties. Since the city may not deny service for land that develops in the county (i.e. that is not annexed or zoned), the city has become concerned about preserving utility resources and ensuring continued availability for properties within city limits.
After state law regarding annexation changed in recent legislative sessions, the city attempted to redefine the land area included in the city’s CCN to match city limits so that the city would no longer be required to serve the ETJ unless a property was annexed. The request was denied by the Public Utilities Commission. As a result, Round Rock has addressed the annexation issue by offering municipal services at a reduced level to properties within the ETJ that do not desire to annex into the City in an effort to preserve utility resource capacity. The reduced level is equivalent to that permitted for single family zoning, which is four Living Unit Equivalents (4 LUEs) per acre.
Based on the reduced service level, if the 149-acre property that is the subject of this zoning application was developed in the county, the city would be required to provide up to 597 LUEs to the site. The applicant, Amazon.com Services, LLC, proposes approximately 295.5 LUEs for the entire site, which would allow for the site to develop within the county without compliance with the city’s develop...
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