City council turns down RV variance request

The Clarendon City Council shot down a variance request that would have allowed RVs in the R1 residential zone during the city’s regular meeting August 13.

The request to allow recreational vehicle campers at 816 S. Johns Street was met with criticism from the council, which last month began the process of drafting an ordinance to govern RV parks in the city. The hand-drawn plan in front aldermen last week showed three RVs to be placed on the property with a storm shelter nearby.

Aldermen said they did not want RV parks in residential areas and noted that the zoning rules currently do not allow that activity.

The aldermen were unanimous in their desire to not approve the request with the only contention being whether they should simply take no action on the request and let it die or to actual take a recorded vote against the request.

Several council members felt that an official vote would send a stronger message for this request and future requests. The council then voted unanimously to deny the request.

Interim City Administrator Floyd Hartman gave an updated on the proposed RV park ordinance, which he said was still being reviewed by the city attorney. He said he hopes to have the draft ordinance ready for council to look at in September.

The RV issue is one the council identified earlier this summer as an area the city needs to address to be prepare for an influx of activity that neighboring towns have experienced due to construction on data center projects.

In addition to regulating RVs in the city, building codes and code enforcement have been other areas the council and Hartman have been working to improve.

Danny Barrett of Texas Communities Group addressed the board about additional services TCG can provide to help the city improve code enforcement, specifically in terms of weeds and grass, debris, and junk vehicles. At the council’s direction, TCG will have a proposal services focused on those areas at the September 10 meeting.

Hartman also led a discussion about reinstating building permits and building codes in the city, which were repealed about a decade ago. More information is being gathered about what the city can and should do and what should be left to the state. Aldermen say they want enforcement but do not want undue burdens on residents wanting to do home improvements.

In other city business, the council designated Paula Lowrie as the person responsible for the city complying with Texas Tax Code; proposed a tax rate of $0.579323 per $100 valuation for the coming year; set tax and budget hearing dates next month; approved employee policy changes as corrected; and reappointed Cameron Word as the city’s representative on the Greenbelt Water Authority Board. In his administrator’s report, Hartman gave an update on the TECQ water quality violation and steps the city and Greenbelt are taking to address that issue.