FREEPORT — Residents who have grass sprouting among their loose-surfaced driveways soon might not have to worry about a municipal code enforcement officer knocking on the door.
Elected officials on Monday supported removal of a requirement from Freeport’s zoning code stating homeowners must place material — including concrete, asphalt, gravel, cinder, shell or limestone — to create a driveway.
The move would make it easier for residents to maintain their grass, which has a tendency to grow between parking surfaces. It is difficult to trim the grass growing underneath loose-material driveways, which are common in Freeport.
As it stands now, people found in violation of the requirement can be fined up to $200, decided by a judge in the city’s municipal court.
“A lot of people don’t have room for a drive, and some of them don’t have an alley behind their house to put in a drive, so we’re removing a specific type of surface because the grass has grown through that,” Mayor Larry McDonald said. “This has cost a lot of residents a lot of money because they have a shell drive and the grass has grown through that.”
City Council voted to place the item on the Nov. 16 meeting agenda as an action item.
The measure to strike the parking-surface requirement was proposed by the planning committee, whose members are studying lot sizes within the city.
Lot sizes in Freeport vary between 25 and 50 feet, making it difficult for some residents to comfortably create driveways, City Manager Jeff Pynes said.
“We want to have planning committee members take those lot sizes into consideration in the ordinance,” Pynes said. “Like, for me, it would not make sense to park on non-paved surfaces because I have plenty of paved surfaces at my house. But those lots that don’t have the ability to have those surfaces, they’re looking at an ordinance to meet the needs of our city.”
Also at the meeting, council:
CLOSED: A second public hearing on the proposed annexation of 122 acres near Surfside Beach. The hearing was closed five minutes after it was opened, when nobody voiced approval or concerns.
The proposed annexation includes 1,000 feet of beachfront and stretches of land protected by the Coastal Barrier Resources Act.
Elected officials have said the annexation would be for possible development, although they would not say what type of development it would be.
NOMINATED: Jesse Hibbetts as a candidate for the Brazoria County Appraisal District board of directors with a 3-1 vote, with Councilman Clan Cameron dissenting.
Cameron voted against the nomination of Hibbetts because “it’s a ridiculous waste of time.”
“We should completely ignore something that we have absolutely no chance in affecting,” Cameron said.
Nathaniel Lukefahr covers Freeport for The Facts. Contact him at 979-237-0151.