Sherman Council Approves Joiner Ranch Zoning Nearly Two Years After Commission Recommendation

The Sherman City Council approved zoning for the Joiner Ranch planned development on July 6, placing about 173 acres near Blue Flame Road and FM 691 in a new planned development district. The decision came roughly two years after the city's Planning and Zoning Commission recommended the change. Council members passed the item by voice vote, and no opposition was heard, according to a recording of the meeting.

The motion combined Ordinance 6947 with a companion measure, Resolution 7654, according to the recording. The ordinance rezones about 173.083 acres in the 2801 block of Blue Flame Road and the 2900 block of FM 691, the council's agenda packet shows. That land now carries the city's PD, or Planned Development, designation for Joiner Ranch.

The packet for the July 6 meeting also contained a development agreement for Joiner Ranch. The agreement applies to about 173.157 acres south of FM 691, north of Blue Flame Road and east of U.S. Highway 75, according to the packet. The document anticipates a public improvement district on the property and caps the district's bonds at an aggregate of $39 million.

Nearly two years separated the council's decision from the earlier action at the Planning and Zoning Commission. The commission voted 6-0 in July 2024 to recommend the zone change. That vote was a recommendation to the council, not final zoning approval, according to the packet. The council's approval came roughly 720 days later.

The record from the commission's July 2024 review includes a comment from Holcim. In it, the company said residential development at Joiner Ranch would be near M-2 heavy manufacturing uses. Holcim said those nearby uses included concrete and asphalt plants. The company asked for recorded notice language for future buyers, according to the record.

Nearby Denison handles planned development zoning in a similar way. That city's official planned development checklist describes PD zoning as a flexible development tool, and it states that the planning commission makes a recommendation while the city council holds final approval authority, the same sequence the Joiner Ranch case followed in Sherman.