Council approves PD amendment for Richardson West school rebuild after neighborhood concessions

The Richardson City Council unanimously approved a planned-development amendment (ZF25-2522) on March 9 to permit the reconstruction of Richardson West Junior High as a middle school and to add an associated parking lot on a 0.869-acre tract north of Holly Drive.

City staff and the applicant described the proposal: the school building footprint will expand from roughly 144,000 to 207,000 square feet, accommodate an initial opening enrollment of about 927 students in 2028 (with a future maximum build-out of 1,000) and provide 67 parking spaces in the new Lot C. The PD amendment allows a modest height adjustment (up to 60 feet) to accommodate a three-story central space and daylighting features.

Developers and district representatives emphasized traffic circulation changes designed to increase on-site stacking and reduce off-site congestion. "This circulation plan provides stacking for approximately 90 vehicles," said the city's planner, and buses will have a separated path to limit conflicts with parent drop-off lanes. Staff will require a pedestrian management plan reviewed by Transportation & Mobility before certificate of occupancy and may request additional traffic studies as the campus approaches full enrollment.

Neighbors urged stronger screening, lower lumens and alternatives to a chain-link fence around the new lot. Chrissy Cortez Mathis, who lives immediately behind the new parking lot, requested a landscape buffer of Texas sage in lieu of a fence and suggested the district explore shared daytime parking with a nearby church to reduce impervious surface and heat-island effects. The applicant responded that the district would work with the city and neighbors; the ordinance language was amended to allow tubular steel fencing and a required evergreen landscape buffer designed to reach six-foot height at maturity.

Staff confirmed lighting standards will require a photometric plan and adherence to a maximum of 1 foot-candle at the property line. Project proponents said the parking lot lights would be shielded, LED and dimmable, and stadium lighting would operate only during events. The council also discussed staging logistics during construction and asked the district to site trailers and storage to minimize impacts on adjacent homes.

After public testimony and applicant clarifications, Mayor Pro Tem Hutchenrider moved to adopt the ordinance with the landscaping and tubular steel screening conditions; Councilmember Murphy seconded and the vote passed unanimously.

Next steps: the district will submit civil and photometric plans for staff review, provide the pedestrian management plan before a certificate of occupancy, and coordinate construction staging to limit neighborhood impacts.