Grace Avenue United Methodist Church is seeking a specific use permit for a columbarium on its campus south of Main Street. It is one of the public hearings on the Planning & Zoning Commission's agenda for Tuesday, Nov. 10.
The City Council adopted an ordinance on July 7 that allows a columbarium only with a specific use permit, according to the staff report. The zoning code groups columbariums with cemeteries and mausoleums as property used for interring the dead.
The church proposes a single unit on the north side of its building, about 475 feet south of Main Street and roughly 975 feet west of Majestic Garden Drive. Staff lists it at about 5 feet 6 inches wide, 1 foot 9 inches deep and 6 feet 5 inches tall, built of materials that match the church.
Staff says the location keeps the columbarium largely out of view from Main Street, with the church building standing between it and the nearest homes, about 535 feet to the southwest. The church has 200 parking spaces, 10 more than it needs, and the columbarium requires none. No one had contacted the city about the request when the report was written.
The church scheduled a meeting with neighboring homeowners' associations for Wednesday, Nov. 4, and staff plans to relay residents' comments to commissioners. Staff recommends approval.
Also on the agenda
- Senior living on Legacy Drive: Sovereign at Frisco is seeking approval of plans for 152 senior living units on 10 acres on the west side of Legacy, about 2,500 feet south of Stonebrook Parkway. The site is bordered by parkland and floodplain, and staff says no protected trees would be removed.
- Grocery store at Coit and Main: A site plan shows one grocery store building on 4 acres on the north side of Main, 275 feet east of Coit Road. Because of a 2002 development agreement, the land can be built under the rules in effect that March. A 15-foot landscape strip and an 8-foot masonry wall would separate it from homes to the north.
- Parkhaven by Sobha: The builder of a 233-home subdivision on 74.5 acres at Hillcrest Road and Aragon Lane, in Frisco's extraterritorial jurisdiction, is asking for a 30-day extension. If granted, the plat returns Dec. 8.
- Preston and Main: Commissioners will be asked to call a public hearing on rewriting the 2020 zoning for 12.2 acres at the northwest corner, which was approved for retail, restaurant, office and hotel uses.
After the regular meeting, the commission holds a special session to give direction on a development plan for 32.8 acres at the northwest corner of Sitka and Hickory streets, zoned Commercial-1.
