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After years of legal battles, bankruptcies, ownership changes and an unfinished parking garage standing as a reminder of a stalled redevelopment, the latest proposal for the former Spot @ Myra property hit another roadblock June 22.
The Farmers Branch Planning and Zoning Commission voted 5-2 to table a request to remove the age restriction from the long-delayed senior housing project at 12150 Medical Parkway, allowing the applicant more time to demonstrate why the restriction should be eliminated before the case returns July 27.
Following public comment during which all speakers spoke against removing the age restriction even as some commented on the quality of the project or their desire to have the project finished, Vice Chair Marcus Miller made the motion to table, seconded by Commissioner Scott Noris. Commissioners Amber Raley, Miller, Noris, Colin Kirby and alternate Breeanna Banks voted in favor. Alden Sultzbaugh and Patrick Trapp voted against the motion.
The applicant, Elie Hajj of Cive Inc., requested an amendment to Planned Development District No. 18 to replace the previously approved age-restricted independent senior living development with a conventional 301-unit multifamily apartment community while retaining plans for four single-family homes on the site. The proposal would enclose the existing parking garage that has remained unfinished since construction halted several years ago.
City staff recommended approval of the zoning amendment despite noting the proposal is not consistent with the Farmers Branch 2045 Comprehensive Plan's Regional Commercial land-use designation.
The property, formerly known as Spot @ Myra, has become one of the city's longest-running redevelopment projects. In 2019, the City Council approved an age-restricted independent senior living development after months of discussion. Construction later stalled after the parking garage was built, and the property eventually changed ownership, leaving the unfinished structure vacant for years.
During the June 22 hearing, several residents said the age restriction had been a key part of the original agreement that led them to support the project. That history shaped much of the June 22 discussion.
Residents repeatedly told commissioners they supported the original zoning because it limited the development to senior housing and argued removing that condition would fundamentally change the agreement reached with the neighborhood.
Every resident who spoke during the public hearing opposed lifting the age restriction.
David Koch, who lives about 325 feet from the property, urged commissioners to either deny the request or slow the process, saying the proposal differed significantly from what neighbors helped develop.
“What I heard tonight is vastly different than what we heard when PD-18 was finally put together and approved, and that was a long process, where the neighbors, the entire neighborhood, got involved in the process,” he said.
Jessica Knowles said she would prefer a project that better serves families and the surrounding schools, adding she believed senior housing would provide greater community benefits than traditional apartments.
“We have two elementaries and plenty of children. It would be great to have a senior center so that the children can go sing and practice and bring joy to those seniors,” she said.
Another resident, Clare Connelly, praised the quality of the proposed design but didn’t think it was appropriate for the neighborhood.
Residents also raised concerns about increased traffic through the neighborhood, vehicle access to Myra Lane, lighting impacts and the possibility that removing the age restriction would increase the number of children and vehicles using nearby streets.
While several commissioners complimented the project's design, questions centered less on architecture and more on whether the applicant had demonstrated that senior housing was no longer financially feasible.
Miller said the applicant effectively explained why it wanted to build market-rate apartments but had not adequately shown why the age-restricted project approved by the city could not succeed.
The applicant responded that previous owners had been unable to secure financing because lenders were unwilling to fund an age-restricted apartment development and argued the project could not move forward under the existing zoning restrictions.
Rather than recommend approval or denial, commissioners opted to delay a decision.
Before the vote, Chair Amber Raley explained what additional information the commission wanted before considering the request again.
"We feel the additional information that we need to make an informed decision on this is the viability of a 55+ age restriction in order to consider removing that aspect of the zoning for this," Raley said.
The case is scheduled to return to the Planning and Zoning Commission on July 27 before ultimately moving to the City Council for final consideration.
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