Require Code Compliance: Deny Safety Variances 25099661 & 2026-0203 on Center St

We, the residents, business owners, and customers of the Washington Avenue/Center Street corridor, urgently call on the Houston Planning Commission to DENY Variance Requests 25099661 and 2026-0203.

The developer is asking to bypass basic infrastructure codes to maximize their footprint, slashing required parking and shrinking the mandatory pedestrian safety buffer. We welcome growth in our neighborhood, but developers must build to code. We cannot absorb massive, developer-created safety hazards.

Why These Variances Must Be Denied:

The "Fire Trap" (Emergency Access): Cutting required parking forces overflow cars onto the curb. If cars parallel park on both sides of our 28-foot street, the driving lane shrinks to 12 feet. Fire ladder trucks require 26 feet to safely operate and deploy outriggers. This variance physically traps emergency responders.

ADA & Pedestrian Safety Hazards: Shrinking the street buffer from 10 feet to 7.5 feet destroys the physical space needed for safe, ADA-compliant sidewalks, wheelchair navigation, and paratransit loading.

Traffic Paralysis: The developer is asking to cut 63 required parking spaces while lacking in dedicated guest spots. This will dump well over 100 overflow cars onto a narrow street that dead-ends at a train track, completely blocking municipal waste and delivery trucks.

Increased Flooding: Paving over that 2.5-foot safety setback eliminates permeable soil along the entire property line, pushing more stormwater runoff directly into our streets.

A Dangerous Precedent: If the City grants these safety loopholes for profit, every future developer in the Washington Avenue corridor will demand the same. We cannot let our neighborhood's safety standards be permanently degraded.

HOW YOU CAN HELP RIGHT NOW:

Sign this Petition immediately.

Email the City: Send a one-line email to speakercomments.pc@houstontx.gov saying: "I oppose Variances 25099661 and 2026-0203 at 3520 Center St. Developers must follow existing code to ensure fire safety, ADA accessibility, and infrastructure viability."

Show Up: Join us at the Planning Commission hearing on Thursday, March 5, at 2:30 PM at the City Hall Annex (900 Bagby St). We need bodies in the room!