Planning commission approves minor PUD amendment for Villa Square with conditions on lighting and parking

The Broken Arrow Planning Commission voted to approve a minor amendment to PUD-002916-2026 (Villa Square), a 1.37-acre commercial site near 61st and 9th, after staff recommended the change to bring the parcel into alignment with the current zoning ordinance. Planning staff said the original PUD, approved July 21, 2003, included more stringent parking and facade requirements that made redevelopment difficult; the amendment would allow the applicant to follow modern zoning standards while requesting limited relief around parking-lot landscaping and stacking spaces.

Planning staff read a letter into the record recommending approval and noted that water and sanitary sewer service are available and the parcel is not in the 100-year floodplain. "Based upon the location of the property, the surrounding land uses, staff recommends that PUD-002916-2026 be approved," staff stated during the presentation. Commissioners asked detailed questions about two areas of neighbor concern: vehicle queuing at pickup windows and screening/lighting along the street edge. Staff acknowledged a documentation discrepancy in the materials (one reference stated "one tree per 35 lineal feet" while the PUD document shows 30) and said a conceptual site plan should be added to the record for clarity.

Neighbors and three written commenters cited risks from light spillover, trash collection times, noise and driveway access. "We would like to maintain as much as possible all of the trees that are there," said Brenda Christie, president of the Stonewood Hills HOA, urging stronger buffering and downward-directed lighting. Staff responded that many protections — such as required trash screening, photometric lighting plans and engineering review of stormwater — are already in local ordinances, and code enforcement can act if operations cause impacts.

Applicant representatives, including general contractor and owner Gassmund Ginos Moni and engineer Kurt Wilkins, described a multi-tenant building intended for prepaid pickup: "The intent is for it to be mostly a pickup window," they said, adding that parking stalls would be used for longer waits and that curb-cut and mutual-access designs were included in the conceptual plan now available to the commission. The applicants said potential tenants include a family-owned pizza business and a coffee shop, and proposed two delivery windows oriented to different sides of the building to reduce queuing into the street.

After discussion, a commissioner moved to approve staff recommendations. The motion passed on roll call with four votes in favor and one opposed. Commissioners noted the amendment is minor and therefore does not proceed to City Council; staff will address detailed site and engineering requirements during the site-plan review and permit process.