Brookhaven Courier

Issue date: 9/24/07 Section: News

Virtual representation of proposed Science and Allied Health Building

The Farmers Branch City Council voted down a rezoning request by Brookhaven College and the Dallas County Community College District, which would add an entrance and/or exit from Marsh Lane, build a new Science and Allied Health Building and add parking spaces on campus.

The council voted 4-1 after the FB Planning and Zoning Committee voted unanimously to pass the proposal on to the City Council.

Sandy Curtis, FB resident who is in favor of the college's request and a parent of a Brookhaven student, said about 15-20 Farmers Branch citizens attended the council meeting to express displeasure with Brookhaven's plan.

She said the citizens were concerned about light pollution from a new building, excess water runoff from the creek that surrounds Brookhaven and the exit ruining the "country lane feel" of Marsh Lane.

Curtis said she has since written a letter to the college and to the City Council expressing her displeasure with the outcome of the meeting.

City Council member Tim Scott said the main reason the proposal was denied as written was because of the Marsh Lane exit.

"As a City Council our job is to reflect the wants and needs of the citizens," Scott said. "Our citizens like that Farmers Branch is a 'city in a park' and we don't want to ruin the aesthetics of Marsh Lane."

Dr. Sharon Blackman, president of Brookhaven, said the college needs some kind of entrance, exit or both going north on Marsh to ensure the safety of Brookhaven students, faculty and staff.

She said she spoke with Scott and told him if there's an issue on campus and they had to try and get everyone off campus in a timely manner it would be impossible. Blackman said the city and college did studies on traffic and any alterations to the current exits would have no affect in a crisis situation.

"Some of the citizens in the wooded-creek area do not want to see an entrance onto campus if you're going south on Marsh Lane," Blackman said. "But I think we can still accomplish what we need with an entrance where people could enter and exit the campus going north."

She said it might be agreeable if there is not a cutaway going across Marsh, but she has not spoken to any citizens about that yet.

Tim O'Hare, deputy mayor of FB, said he will never vote for a proposal that cuts through Marsh. He said he and the City Council value Brookhaven and what it means to the community, but there are certain things in the proposal that he won't pass as written.

Continued...

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