Lancaster council approves special exception for two warehouses despite neighborhood opposition

Lancaster — The City Council approved a special exception to the development code that will allow two large warehouse buildings to be built without meeting the usual vertical and horizontal articulation standards, after staff and the developer said the project will add extra landscaping to screen nearby homes.

City manager staff told the council the applicant proposes two warehouses — one of about 255,000 square feet and a second of about 199,800 square feet — on properties addressed as 2304 East Longhorn Drive and 2620 West Wintergreen Road and that the site is designated for logistics and distribution on the city's future land-use map. Staff said the applicant will provide an additional 13.3% landscaping above the minimum requirement to offset the requested exception.

Several residents testified in opposition during the public hearing, saying truck traffic, noise and air quality have already affected their neighborhoods. "My children deserve to grow up in a safe neighborhood where they can play outside," said Monica Diaz, who lives next to the project site. Tim Olin Smith said the number of warehouses and the resulting truck traffic have eroded parks and neighborhood life.

The developer's representative, Tyler Jones, said both properties were zoned light industrial when acquired and that the requested action only concerns articulation standards, not zoning or whether the buildings may be constructed. "We worked with planning staff to expand landscape buffering to help screen the neighbors and Wintergreen," Jones said.

Council members asked technical questions about where loading and curb cuts would be located and whether landscaping would be placed along Wintergreen; staff and the applicant said loading activity will be on the Longhorn side and the enhanced screening will be focused on the Wintergreen side. One council member acknowledged residents' concerns about the cumulative effect of warehouses in the city but said the current request was limited to a design exception.

A motion to approve the special exception was made, seconded and carried. The council did not record a roll-call tally in the public transcript; the mayor announced the motion carried.