Planning commissioners leave record open on proposed 80-space RV park at Dallas Golf Club

The Dallas Planning Commission closed its May 14 public hearing on a conditional‑use permit for an 80‑space RV park at the Dallas Golf Club but left the record open so the applicant can respond to a late memo from Polk County Public Works and other technical questions.

Jess, a city planning staff member, told the commission the proposal would replace the driving range at 11875 Orrs Corner Road and that the Dallas development code allows RV parks in parks/open‑space zones by conditional use. Staff recommended approval with conditions that would: cap the site at 80 RV spaces; require the applicant to demonstrate adequate fire protection (either hydrants or alternative measures such as on‑site holding tanks or pumps); require a floodplain development permit prior to construction; obtain an access permit from Polk County for the existing private bridge; set a 35‑foot setback from the creek high‑water mark; require down‑directed lighting; and establish quiet hours from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.

Commissioners focused their questions on three core uncertainties staff identified: (1) whether Polk County’s access‑control requirements for the private, 20‑foot‑wide bridge could force bridge widening or replacement; (2) how the project would satisfy fire‑flow and hydrant requirements where no hydrants exist nearby; and (3) floodplain design and no‑net‑rise engineering that would be needed before building permits. Jess said the city fire chief and a contracted fire marshal had reviewed the application, the applicant provided an engineer’s memo about bridge strength and water availability, and the staff condition on fire protection was phrased to allow feasible alternatives rather than a prescriptive single solution.

Alan Sorum, attorney for the applicant, said the traffic impact analysis submitted with the application shows the bridge and driveway configurations can accommodate project traffic (the TIA projects about 22 trips in the peak hour) and disputed Polk County’s proposed prescriptive condition. “I don’t believe that condition of approval is authorized or required by your approval criteria,” Sorum told the commission, arguing Polk County was asking for an ambiguous, potentially unlawful condition. He offered to have his traffic engineer submit a written response and asked the commission to close the hearing but leave the record open so the applicant could add that material.

Commissioners expressed concern that if Polk County required bridge replacement the project could become infeasible; the applicant agreed that a requirement to replace the bridge could defeat the project given multimillion‑dollar replacement costs. On floodplain questions, the applicant said the plan anticipates using on‑site cut‑and‑fill with a no‑net‑rise calculation to pull pads and aisles out of the floodplain where feasible, with detailed calculations to follow during the floodplain permit and site‑plan review process.

After discussion the commission voted to close the hearing and leave the record open: 14 days for new evidence, followed by a 7‑day rebuttal window and a final 7‑day applicant legal argument window. The applicant consented to an effective 28‑day extension of the city’s 120‑day statutory decision clock to cover the open‑record and rebuttal periods. The commission scheduled deliberations and a decision for June 11, 2026.

The commission’s action does not approve the conditional‑use permit; staff’s recommendation remains approval with conditions, but those conditions — and Polk County’s comments — will be revisited in the written record before commissioners deliberate. If any of the three outstanding conditions (adequate fire protection, floodplain permit, Polk County access permit) cannot be met, staff said the applicant would need to return with revised plans and the commission could revisit the decision.

The commission also discussed routine business after the hearing, endorsing the city’s 2025 citizen‑involvement report and noting plans to update hearing scripts and procedural language to ensure opportunities to raise conflict/ex parte challenges are explicit. The meeting adjourned at 7:41 p.m.