Argyle council adopts 50-foot buffers, 3-foot berm requirement along FM 407

The Argyle Town Council on April 2 adopted ordinance 2026-16, revising landscape buffer-yard requirements along FM 407 to require a 50-foot buffer and a minimum 3-foot earthen berm in Buffer Yard E. Town manager Harrison said the change reflects recent commitments by developers and property owners to 50-foot buffers and berms and aims to create consistency along the corridor.

Harrison told council that the Planning & Zoning Commission recommended removing an asterisked exclusion so the standard would apply the full length of FM 407. "We noticed a trend and we like what we're seeing and we just want to continue it across the entire stretch of 407 to make it consistent and also preserve the residential areas along 407," Harrison said.

Council members discussed visual impacts, pedestrian-overlay exceptions and drainage considerations for berms. Some members favored leaving the berm requirement in place for much of the corridor while acknowledging that an eventual Main Street or overlay district could change that standard in pedestrian-oriented areas. A councilor asked whether berms would be feasible on smaller lots; staff said berms can be intermittent and that drainage was considered in the P&Z deliberation.

A motion to approve the ordinance as presented (including the two P&Z recommendations: removing the exclusion and adding the berm requirement) passed with one recorded opposition (Dr. Herman).

Staff noted that the standards apply when a site plan, PD zoning or SUP is required and that existing single-family lots are generally excluded from the landscape-plan requirement; grandfathering protects existing development. The ordinance directs staff to incorporate the revised table and berm requirement into the Town Development Standards and to return to P&Z if an overlay district later proposes different pedestrian-oriented standards.