MIDLAND, Texas — The Midland Planning and Zoning Committee had their meeting on Tuesday with 13 items on their agenda.
Item 13 pertained to a preliminary plat for Pavilion Park. It would add a new subdivision on the northside of Solomon Lane and North Fairgrounds Rd.
The committee did approve the motion 6-0, however it came with conditions.
“There were some questions in the staff reports that we had that stated that there were some issues with setbacks and widths of some certain lots so we want to make sure that we’re complying, that everything is being designed as it’s intended to be per city code,” Midland Planning and Zoning Commissioner John Burkholder said.
There were two key issues that were discussed in the meeting. The first one was a need for green spaces, areas where children can play and adults can go on walks or have picnics.
“One of the things that some of these new developments, especially large developments, we’d like to see green space especially since these are developments where you’ll have a lot of families moving in and children that want to go out and play,” Burkholder said.
The second issue came from oil and gas setbacks.
“Texas Railroad Commission state that it’s 135 feet from the well, but any wells that the permit is issued in the city of Midland, it is required to be 500 feet away from those wells unless there is a variance put into place,” Burkholder said.
A variance would simply allow the developers to continue even with the proximity distance.
Although there is no known danger from being in close proximity, it will affect the overall standard of living in the community.
“The further the better in my perspective,” Burkholder said. “You do have noise pollution when it’s extremely close. You’re going to have noise pollution whether it’s 500 feet or 135 feet, but the further away you are, anytime there’s well work being performed, you will hear that it’ll be an annoyance to people who live in the area.”
The motion did pass with the aforementioned conditions. The next steps for the developers is to work to try and implement the recommendations.
Their next meeting will be with Midland City Council and then it will come back to the Midland Planning and Zoning committee for the final vote.
When it is all said and done, the commissioners want to do their community justice and ensure every new neighborhood is safe.