Rischon Development Corp. v. City of Keller

242 S.W.3d 161, 2007 WL 4233561
Court of Appeals of Texas·Decided December 20, 2007·No. 2-06-103-CV·Published·Cited by 32 cases

Opinion

OPINION

ANNE GARDNER, Justice.

I. Introduction

This is a takings case. Appellant Ris-chon Development Corp. complains that the City of Keller committed an unlawful taking under the Texas constitution by imposing certain requirements on a residential development planned by Rischon. The City contends that Rischon consented to all of the requirements. After a bench trial, the trial court rendered a take-nothing judgment on Rischon’s claims against the City. We affirm.

II. Background

The City of Keller is a home-rule municipality in Tarrant County. Rischon is a residential land development company. This dispute concerns a tract of land within the City’s limits that Rischon developed into the Rolling Wood subdivision.

The property in question comprises 19.37 acres, all within the City. The land includes heavily wooded areas, lulls, and a creek flowing through a ten-foot-deep ravine along the only access road, Davis Boulevard. As a result, the land remained undeveloped from the time the City annexed it in the 1960s. Prior to Rischon’s efforts to develop the property, it was zoned for residential use with lots a minimum of 36,000 square feet.

In 1998 — before it purchased the property — Rischon met with the City’s development staff to discuss the general features of Rischon’s proposed development. In December 1998, Rischon applied for rezoning of the property as a planned development — in other words, it sought zoning that would take into account the unique features of the property with some freedom to propose variances from the usual ordinance requirements. Rischon asked the City to approve a planned development zoning ordinance with the following requirements and features:

1. An entrance with wrought iron gates;
2. A private subdivision with private streets built to City standards but maintained by the residents of Rolling Wood through a homeowners association;
3. Wrought iron fencing along the front of the property with chain-link fencing around the perimeter of the property;
4. Reduction of the minimum lot size to 14,100 square feet;
5. Construction of 0.9 miles of asphalt hike/bike trials connecting all common areas;
6. No internal sidewalks;
*164 7. Construction of a six-inch water line from Davis Boulevard and tied into the an existing water line to the south of the property;
8. Construction of a ten-inch offsite sewer line from the Trinity River Authority sewer line to Rolling Wood;
9. Construction of an eight-inch sanitary sewer line with extensions to the southern corners of the property for future development;
10. Construction of 480 feet of eight-inch sanitary sewer line from the southeast corner of Rolling Wood to Bandit Trail — an adjacent, existing development not then served by the City sewer system — for which the City would reimburse all costs; and
11. A private open-space area along the perimeter of the development and surrounding a small pond to mitigate the effect of the smaller lot sizes.

On January 11,1999, the City’s Planning and Zoning Commission considered Ris-chon’s proposal. A number of Keller residents testified in opposition to the rezoning, particularly to rezoning the property for lot sizes that were less than half the size of the existing classification. The City fire chief recommended that the City require fire sprinkler systems in the Rolling Wood residences because of the restricted access to the neighborhood. City development staff recommended that, as per City ordinances, the City require Rischon to build sidewalks along the interior streets and to escrow the cost of the sidewalk along Davis Boulevard for future construction. Rischon consented to both recommendations.

The City Council considered Rischon’s zoning request on February 2, 1999. Ris-chon did not object to City staff’s sidewalk and fire sprinkler recommendations. With those modifications, the Council approved Rischon’s application and rezoned Rolling Wood with the following conditions:

1. Installation of wrought iron fencing along Davis Boulevard and the installation of perimeter fencing of a nature to be determined at the preliminary plat stage;
2. Escrow of the Davis Boulevard sidewalk funds;
3. Construction of interior sidewalks;
4. Development of hike and bike trails;
5. Rischon to bear the entire cost of providing sanitary sewer service to the development;
6. Residential fire sprinklers in all dwelling units.

Rischon raised no objections to these requirements at the February 2 City Council meeting.

Rischon purchased the Rolling Wood property on March 9, 1999, for $400,000.

Rischon submitted a preliminary plat for the Rolling Wood development, and the City’s Planning and Zoning Commission reviewed the plat on April 12, 1999. The plat included plans for construction of a wrought iron fence along the entire perimeter of the development. City staff recommended approval of the plat subject to several changes, including a six-foot-high fence along Davis Boulevard. Rischon’s representative stated that the plat would comply with the staff recommendations concerning the wrought iron fence. The Planning and Zoning Commission approved the plat with the staff recommendations; again, Rischon did not object.

On December 22, 1999, Rischon’s president, John Hawkins, advised the city by letter that he “deemed it inappropriate that I should bear the cost to extend” the sanitary sewer to Bandit Trail. The City *165 Attorney explained the sewer-extension requirement in a letter to the City Manager, and the City Manager forwarded the explanation to Hawkins. Ultimately, as described below, the City agreed to reimburse and did reimburse Rischon for the cost of the offsite Bandit Trail utility extensions.

Notwithstanding its dispute with the Bandit Trail sewer extension, Rischon submitted to the City Council a Developer’s Agreement outlining the costs of construction, what was required, and how the construction would be carried out. The City Council approved the agreement on March 21, 2000; Hawkins signed it on behalf of Rischon on March 22; and City staff signed it by March 23. The City and Rischon agreed as follows:

1. Rischon agreed to build sidewalks along right-of-ways that did not front lots;
2. Rischon agreed to pay $23,000 in park fees in lieu of dedicating land for public use;
3. Rischon agreed to pay $34,500 in roadway impact fees;
4. Rischon agreed to escrow $8,575 for construction of the Davis Boulevard sidewalk;
5.

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Rischon Development Corp. v. City of Keller, 242 S.W.3d 161, 2007 WL 4233561 (Tex. Ct. App. 2007).

242 S.W.3d 161 (Rischon Development Corp. v. City of Keller) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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