Plan Commissioner and developer, Christian Chernock, has officially withdrawn his rezoning applications. Residents in Oak Cliff appear to have successfully defeated a proposed rezoning in north Oak Cliff from a single-family residential district to a multi-family district.
Residents argued that the development, if approved, would fundamentally change the character of the neighborhood by rezoning the 10 single-family parcels to permit a 100-unit apartment complex, four 8-plexes and 15 houses immediately adjacent to single-family homes. Nearby neighbors also maintained that the proposed development would add unnecessary traffic to the already overburdened N. Hampton Road corridor and was incompatible with the current long-standing land use patterns and density.
For many residents, what was most concerning was the ethical concerns raised by this situation wherein a sitting Plan Commissioner files an aggressive upzoning application in his own district. And according to his own accounts in a published interview, District 1 Councilman Chad West was “perfectly fine” with his Plan Commissioner having rezoning cases before the Commission.
Interestingly, the rezoning attempt coincided with City’s proposed update of it’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan called Forward Dallas 2.0 that called for more density in single-family districts by allowing duplexes, ADU, and multiplexes by right. Commissioner Chernock and Councilman West have been some of the most hawkish proponents of Forward Dallas 2.0 — each having published op-eds expressing their support for greater density in single-family districts with allowable lots as small as 1500 sq. feet. Many residents throughout the city saw this rezoning attempt as an example of the density vision held by supporters of Forward Dallas 2.0 and viewed this as a lost opportunity for them to provide an example of how to add density right.
NOCRRUD believes this fantastic result is due to the diligent and proactive efforts of the community, teamwork, and coordination, coupled with the developer’s questionable ethics and his refusal to listen to and address the concerns of West Kessler, N. Boulevard Terrace and the public at large.
The developer and Councilman West have been silent about why the application was withdrawn, but it is presumed that the robust and compelling opposition from all areas of Oak Cliff and Dallas influenced the developer’s decision. NOCRRUD and neighbors realize that this saga is probably not over and we remain vigilant against future rezoning attempts that perhaps could be fortified by the recently passed Forward Dallas 2.0.
