Ladonia, Texas -- With only minor amendments, the Lake Ralph Hall Zoning Commission voted unanimously to recommend approval of the Lake Ralph Hall Zoning Regulations and Official Zoning Map pursuant to Texas Local Government Code Chapter 231 for an area 5,000 feet around the future shoreline (measured as 551 feet above mean sea level) of Lake Ralph Hall, including but not limited to agricultural, residential, and non-residential zoning districts and establishing development standards.
That recommendation came at a public hearing Thursday, January 26, 2023, at the Fannindel High School in Ladonia.
The next step in this process will occur at 8:45 a.m. on Tuesday, February 7, 2023, at the Fannin County Courthouse, when Fannin County Commissioners Court will hold a public hearing regarding possible approval of the Lake Ralph Hall Zoning Regulations and Official Zoning Map.
On February 7, commissioners court will be considering a slightly revised map that includes some relatively minor boundary changes that were approved Thursday night by the Lake Ralph Hall Zoning Commission.
Daniel Harrison of consulting firm Freese and Nichols, Inc. served as moderator, as he had previously done during the zoning process for Bois d'Arc Lake.
The zoning process is designed to encourage economic development and allow landowners to have a voice in how that development occurs.
"We want to manage that growth, not just let it happen," Mr. Harrison remarked.
Although the Shoreline Management Plan is still being developed, Harrison divulged that "the intention is to have boat docks." Details of the permit process for private docks will likely come with the Shoreline Management Plan.
"We want this to be a place we can be proud of and a place that will benefit the county," said Newt Cunningham, chairperson of the Lake Ralph Hall Zoning Commission and Fannin County Judge.
Judge Cunningham noted that the ultimate authority regarding official approval of the Lake Ralph Hall Zoning Regulations and Official Zoning Map will be Fannin County Commissioners Court.
The proposed zoning regulations and proposed zoning map can be found here