February 24, 2026

By Mary Beth Gahan

A storage facility will not be built on the southeast side of town for at least a year after the planning and zoning commission denied a request to waive the waiting period before applying again.

The decision was unanimous and was at the sole discretion of the commission to determine if the application had changed enough to be reconsidered. It will not be considered by the town council.

In December, the commission recommended denial for the project after several neighbors spoke in opposition with concerns about traffic, noise and the view of a two-story building from their yards. The facility was proposed to be built at the corner of Old Orchard Road and Flower Mound Road.

 At the town council meeting, there was overwhelming support for the project, but some residents were still concerned. The council voted 3 to 2 in favor of the facility, but failed to get a super majority needed in light of the commission’s denial.

An applicant must wait one year after the council denies a request before submitting another application for the same project, unless the planning and zoning commission grants a waiver. Another route would be if one of the two council members who originally voted against the project — deputy mayor pro tem Adam Schiestel and council member Janvier Warner — say they are open to reconsidering.

Schiestel said he has not changed his mind.

At Monday’s meeting, several neighbors spoke in opposition to the project. There were none in attendance who were in favor of it, besides the developer, O’Neal Gray, and his realtor.

The waiver request included a 20-foot setback reduction, but that wasn’t enough of a change for the commission.

“We had a lot of public speak about this. In fact, they kind of changed my mind about this application originally,” said vice chair Jason Hobbs. “I heard enough from them and I'm hearing enough from them tonight. I don't think this is significant enough to warrant asking all these people to come out once again.”