In The Zone: Proposed Clinic in Northeast Dallas Rejected by City Plan Commission

The Dallas Plan Commission has denied a proposal for the southwest corner of Stults Road and Forest Lane to construct a 30,000-square-foot clinic.

Residents of neighboring Hamilton Park, Northwood Estates, Northwood Heights, Royal Lane Village, and the Urban Reserve said they opposed the development for several reasons:

• The site contains a floodplain and therefore threatens safety
• The rezoning request was submitted before floodplain mitigation planning
• The increased traffic density on Stults Road would interfere with the gateway to a residential community
• A vacant medical facility is ready and waiting at the corner of Greenville Ave. and Stults Road
• Helping Hands Ministry already serves the same population with medical services at Royal Lane and Greenville Ave.
• The clinic will sit at high-accident intersection at Stults Road and Forest Lane
• More than 90 percent of the 58 nearby residents surveyed oppose the project

Flood Zone Presents Safety Issues

“The property sits below street level, and is narrows closer to Forest Lane,” says Zachariah Manning, a real estate investor, County Commissioner candidate and now U.S. Congressional Candidate for district 30, organized and lead the opposition.

“You cannot egress off Forest Lane. It was too many negatives going on for it to work,” says Manning. “The opposition we had from our side was overwhelming. No one from the community was in favor of it. Property values south of Forest tend higher in value, and this project jeopardized those values.”

Manning says the CPC At-Large commissioner, Brent Rubin, tried to downplay the flood-plain, but FEMA strongly recommends no critical facilities should be built in a floodplain and Executive Order 11988 clearly requires critical facilities to avoid floodplains:

a)(1) Before taking an action, each agency shall determine whether the proposed action will occur in a floodplain–for major Federal actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, the evaluation required below will be included in any statement prepared under Section 102(2) (C) of the National Environmental Policy Act. This Determination shall be made according to a Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) floodplain map or a more detailed map of an area, if available. If such maps are not available, the agency shall make a determination of the location of the floodplain based on the best available information. The Water Resources Council shall issue guidance on this information not later than October 1, 1977.

In Dallas there is no dearth of alternative locations. And there was also way too much traffic in a residential zone, Manning claimed.

The proposed development was filed by the Dallas County Commissioners Court, which has 10 days to appeal to Dallas City Council.

In the Zone is a CandysDirt.com series where we take a closer look at zoning applications affecting neighborhoods. Have a story idea? Send us a message at [email protected].

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