Montgomery planning commission recommends preliminary plats for BCS Capital, Briarley and Marley; forwards approvals to council

Montgomery, May 5, 2026 — The Montgomery Planning & Zoning Commission on Tuesday recommended approval of several preliminary plats and forwarded its recommendations to the city council for final action.

The commission recommended approval of the preliminary plat for BCS Capital Development (development no. 2415), a mixed commercial and future multifamily site near the Home Depot on Highway 105. City engineer Zach McJones summarized the submission, noting commercial pads and a multifamily reserve would return for later review. "That impact fee is estimated to be $437,000," McJones said, referring to an early staff estimate of connection/impact fees for the development.

McJones told the commission that reserves shown in the packet are preliminary and that final plats and reserve designations (commercial versus multifamily) will return for the commission's review. He also said the developer anticipates a parking-ratio variance on the multifamily portion; final plans for parking and unit mixes will come later from the buyer and their engineer. After questions about entrances, drainage and retaining walls — and a brief presentation from the developer's engineering representative — a commissioner moved and seconded to recommend the preliminary plat; the chair called the question and the motion carried.

The commission also reviewed a revised preliminary plat for Briarley (formerly Redbird Meadows). Staff recapped prior variances approved in the development agreement (lot width, lot area and side-yard setbacks) and noted that certain items remain contingent on pending city council action, including a tree-assessment requirement for several sections. McJones said the development packet included impact-fee figures and other red-line revisions; he told commissioners that final approval by the council on pending variances would determine whether tree assessments must be submitted. "This action tonight would only be either denial or approval contingent upon council approval of a variance request," McJones said. The commission recommended the preliminary plat with that contingency and will forward the recommendation to council.

A similar recommendation was made for Marley/Mill River Meadows (development no. 2006). Staff said the Marley submission includes an impact-fee assessment with a credit for earlier water-line construction paid by the developer. Commissioners approved a recommendation to forward the preliminary plat to city council with the stated variances and tree-assessment conditions.

Votes and next steps: The commission recorded motions and carried recommendations to city council. The transcript records the chair calling the question and the motions carrying; specific numeric roll-call tallies are not included in the meeting record. Several items the commission recommended are explicitly contingent on city council action on pending variances or tree-assessment waivers. The commission also noted that some final plats and reserve designations will return to the commission for additional review before recordation.

The commission discussed coordination with TxDOT (Texas Department of Transportation) for driveway/entrance reviews and noted city staff coordination on water, sewer and impact-fee calculations. City staff said the city is coordinating reviews internally and with external reviewers as plans and final plats are developed. The council is expected to consider related variance and preliminary-plat requests at upcoming city council meetings (staff referenced May 12 and May 24 dates for related council actions).