The Arlington Planning and Zoning Commission on Sept. 3 narrowly approved by a 5-3 vote a three-story, 99-unit apartment building on a 1.605-acre site in downtown Arlington that previously was approved last year as a 62-unit structure.
Commissioners Linda Finley, Thomas Ware and Ronald Maddox voted against the project.
The proposed development is on the site of the old Johnny Balfour Electronics store in downtown Arlington and would have access points primarily from East South Street, Spruance Street, Weeks Avenue and Dugan Street.
On May 15, 2024, the commissioners approved the Balfour on about 1.146 acres of land by a vote of 6-1-0.
On June 25, 2024, Arlington City Council approved the final reading to change the proposed 62-unit Balfour Lofts from neighborhood overlay-community commercial and
downtown neighborhood overlay-residential medium family to downtown neighborhood overlay-planned development for residential multifamily 22 by a vote of 7-0-0.
On Aug. 6, 2025, the Planning and Zoning Commission continued the development’s zoning case to Sept. 3 by a vote of 8-0-0 to work on several items, including acquiring the entire site to allow for a larger complex. The requested zoning change is to planned development for downtown neighborhood overlay-residential multifamily 22 uses, with a development plan.
At the earlier meeting, commissioners expressed concerns about security, parking, apartment size and the possibility that it would have a lot of apartments rented by UTA students. The commission members said that other complexes were left with trash and large items such as furniture outside when students’ leases were up at the end of semesters.
According to city documents, the property owners are Skywalker Holdings; Robin Derek Lyle and Jill Renee Lyle; Kirby D. Smith; En Las Rocas Ranch LLC; and Arlington Urban Ministries, and the applicant for the new zoning request is Mycoskie McInnis Associates Inc. (MMA Inc.), which was represented at the meeting by Nikki Moore.
Since the initial zoning commission meeting, the following changes were made:
- Increased the minimum square footage for the efficiency from 500 to 550.
- Increased the minimum square footage for the one bedroom from 550 to 650.
- Provided a shared ride and delivery parking location near the leasing office.
- Updated the parking counts to meet the 142 required spaces, while counting 75 on-street parking spaces.
- Provided a security plan and wrought iron fencing along Dugan Street.
- Relocated the dumpster to one of the tuck-under garage spaces, with a garage door.
- A rendering for the dog area and proposed carports.
“We’ve taken a lot of your suggestions into consideration, and I think we have found solutions to some of the concerns that were brought up,” Moore said.
She said that one of the main concerns was the complex’s dumpster and trash collection.
“One of the main changes, I think, (that) really drove the conversation was the dumpster relocation from the center parking area over to an internal garage storage system,” Moore said. “We worked directly with Republic Services and the city staff liaison to find an appropriate solution.”
Moore said concerns about students moving out and leaving items also was addressed. Developers plan to limit the amount of student housing at the complex.
“I know some of the concern was during those move out times that happened, twice a year, that there might be some larger items that students possibly could leave behind, and so we’ve coordinated a storage area for those items until they could be donated to Mission Arlington.”
She said that concerns about parking were addressed in the new plans and that moving the dumpster location opened up the site plan for more parking.
“We are now able to meet the RMF-22 parking requirements of 142 spaces, and that does include the on-street and the off-street parking available,” Moore said. “I think it’s important to know that even in the previous planned development, the off-street or the on-street parking spaces were counted toward the required parking overall in this area.”
Moore said the new plan addresses concerns over security.
“Lastly, we were asked to provide additional security measures for the site. We have done that,” Moore said. “There are several places where we’ve added pedestrian entrances into the site along each street. Additional security measures have been added in the staircases.”
She said that developers would prefer to have a vehicle gate at the throat of the entrance.
“In talking with engineering staff and public works, our gate design was not supported because it did not meet the design criteria manual. There is a process of requesting, it’s during the planning phase, and so we are prepared to do that as well, through that phase.”
Ignacio Nunez, zoning commission chairman, said the issue of the vehicle gate likely will have to be addressed when the City Council takes up the case on Oct. 14.
Moore also addressed the size of the units.
“The current multifamily code only requires us to have two amenities and we are providing six,” Moore said. “When you have more than two site amenities in the RMF-22 and you’re in the downtown neighborhood overlay, you qualify for a 10% reduction in your minimum unit sizes. So, with that 10% reduction, we are able to meet the unit size requirements.”
Maggie Campbell, president and CEO of Downtown Arlington, told the commissioners that the proposed site is known for its homeless population and has been designated for the last several years as “capital priority” because of its “very inadequate lighting at the pedestrian level and very inadequate sidewalks in all directions.”
Campbell said both on-street and off-street parking in the area is a concern.
“We’d actually love to explore how the city could enter into parking agreements with private owners to meet our parking needs. We are not able to meet our parking needs. We have created this great place that’s now a destination, and besides the impacts of homelessness, parking is the thing that our property owners and businesses want to talk the most about — or lack thereof.
“We don’t have a mechanism to allow parking as a use, or to allow developers to bring public parking unless it’s part of their development agreement.”
She said a vehicular gate at the property would allow for increased security and that the proposed open-parking design at Balfour Lofts would enhance that.
Commissioner Robert Blake explained why he supports the proposal:
“First of all, I think it’s a great project for downtown. I also appreciate all the changes that were made,” he said. “I think downtown Arlington needs this, because this is the catalyst that is going to drive more commercial downtown, and without the residential and without various very types of residential, it will not support our restaurants and the other things that we need for the entertainment district to have people come to downtown Arlington instead of going to downtown Dallas or downtown Fort Worth. So you have my support.”
Lance Murray is a freelance contributor covering business for the Arlington Report.
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