The College Station City Council met for almost 3 hours Thursday night, convening at 6:00pm and adjourning just before 9:00pm.
All items on the consent agenda were approved without discussion or objection:
- Contract with D.I.J. Construction Inc. for annual traffic pavement striping and markings services, not-to-exceed $500,000 for maintenance activities associated with pavement marking applications on all street types.
- Contract with Jaco Roofing & Construction, Inc. in the amount of $128,400 for the roof replacements at 304 Holleman Drive East (Fire Station #1), 1015 Colgate Drive (Wolf Pen Creek Park green room), and 1600 Rock Prairie Drive (Bachmann Park Community Center), plus contingency in the amount of $12,840 for a total appropriation of $141,240.
- Sponsorship agreement with Athletes Unlimited Softball League for the AUSL Championship Series on July 23-27, 2026 for an amount not to exceed $160,743.
- Franchise agreement ordinance with United Site Solutions, LLC for the collection of recyclables from commercial businesses and multi-family locations.
- Annual clothing and miscellaneous items price agreements with C.C. Creations for $195,000 and M&M Apparel for $80,000 for a total estimated annual expenditure not to exceed $275,000.
- Contract award to Renegade Group, LLC for an electrical overhead crossing relocation and improvement related to the Hwy 6 widening project, for an amount not to exceed $145,583.72.
The workshop agenda took the majority of the evening, specifically the presentation and discussion on incentives to increase housing density. The conversation looped back many times to “impact fees,” and whether or not the fees could be waived for a developer. They cannot. The buzzwords of the night were “middle housing.”
You could sense that the council wanted to make an impact that would allow for more people to own homes within the city. They weren’t looking for more multi-family housing, although they acknowledged that an increase in the number of available apartments could likely cause rents to drop.
What was decided upon is a pilot program to encourage townhome development. Townhomes require a smaller footprint than the traditional single family home, allowing for more living quarters utilizing less acreage. While townhomes can be purchased by companies as investments, they’re hoping that the residences will be owner-occupied.
The council unanimously voted 7-0 in favor of changing the land use designation for the 7.2 acres on Harvey Mitchell South between Dartmouth Street and the Earl Rudder Freeway from General Commercial to Urban Residential. The council again voted unanimously in favor of changing zoning for that area from GC (General Commercial) & OV (Corridor Overlay) to MF (Multi-Family) & NAP (Natural Areas Protected).
The final regular agenda item was an ordinance amendment in the Wolf Pen Creek Zoning District. This area extends from Texas Avenue to the Earl Rudder Freeway. It’s tricky, though. West of Dartmouth Street, it extends from Harvey Road to Holleman Drive. On the east side of Dartmouth Street, it extends south from Holleman Drive, but not all the way to Southwest Parkway. Clear as mud, right? Please see the graphic I have attached at the bottom of this story. The WPC Zoning District is shaded in gray.
The reason there was a request to change to ordinance was to allow for a micro-mobility retailer to display vehicles in front of their business. The council was split on this one, but as Councilman Bob Yancy said, “Let ’em do business!” The ordinance change was approved 4-3.
If you would like to view the packets for any of tonight’s presentation, you can do so by clicking on the title of the item you wish to view.
Harvey-Dartmouth Land Use-Rezoning
