The Wichita Falls Planning and Zoning Commission on Wednesday approved an ordinance to control housing for an anticipated influx of out-of-town workers to build data centers.
Fabian Medellin, the city’s director of development services, told commissioners the purpose is to protect the existing housing market “and ensure that because of the influx of temporary workers that market isn’t thrown completely into disarray.”
He said Skybox Datacenters of Dallas is expected to bring 5,000 to 7,000 workers at their site in the Wichita Falls Business Park.
Google has said it is looking at a potential site just south of Wichita Falls in Archer County.
“That’s quite a bit of influx here that’s going to be well paid there and going to be needing housing,” Medellin said.
He said the ordinance would apply to any property zoned industrial in the city or outside the city limits in its Extra-Territorial Jurisdiction.
He said Wichita Falls has a low cost of living, and the city wants to ensure that’s maintained as much as possible while allowing temporary workforce housing.
Medellin said temporary workers are defined as those temporarily in the area for a large-scale project that’s under construction, and the guidelines are written in such a way that it’s intended to be temporary.
“So here today and gone tomorrow,” he said.
Medellin said a big necessity for these temporary homes would be the need for reliable water and sewer service.
He said the temporary use permits would be valid for three years, but he would have the authority to grant two extensions to stretch out to a total of nine years.
He said permits would have to be tied to specific large-scale construction projects, and the developer would have to provide on-site managers at the housing sites.
Medellin said Wichita County has no zoning regulation and could opt not to participate in the city’s plan.
A few residents voiced concerns to the commission.
Will Pounds said temporary workers would bring wives and children to the city, and permit extensions up to nine years were not temporary.
“Temporary situations are a weekend festival, not nine years,” he said.
He said he was concerned about providing the families with safety, fire protection, proper living conditions, medical care and schooling.
“I don’t see any vision from anybody for that,” he said.
Charlie Peters asked if the city would sell water to people outside the city limits without annexing them.
Medellin said the ordinance would allow for that with City Council approval.
Alfred Perez likened the influx of workers to the construction of the Alaska Oil pipeline.
He said Wichita Falls could be left with thousands of abandoned homes. He also said he was concerned that the projects would bring in “drug dealers, prostitutes, loan sharks and illegal alcohol sales.”
“It’s absolutely foolish,” he said.
In other business, commissioners overrode the planning department’s recommendation to deny plats for two housing additions and a truck stop on the north side of the city, instead granting the projects conditional approval.
The City Council will have final say on the commission’s actions.
This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Panel OKs housing plan for influx of workers into Wichita Falls
Reporting by Lynn Walker, Wichita Falls Times Record News / Wichita Falls Times Record News
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