Board of Adjustment Meeting Summary - August 19, 2026
Board of Adjustment Meeting Summary - August 19, 2026
The Fort Worth Board of Adjustment met on August 19, 2026, with all 11 members present. The meeting covered multiple variance and special exception requests, including sign height, electronic changeable copy signs, telecommunications tower height, lot size, accessory structures, setbacks, and carports. Several cases were continued, and decisions were made on nine cases, with one case split into separate votes.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of July 2026 Minutes: Approved unanimously via roll call.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No public comments were made during the meeting. All speakers were applicants or their representatives.
Discussion Items
- Case BAR26-060: Continued administratively to next month.
- Case BAR26-072: Moved to the end of the agenda; later continued to September due to translator availability.
- Case BAC-26-021: Variance for a freeway sign height from 25 ft to 45 ft at 1081/1021 Oak Grove. Applicant Corey Vaughn demonstrated visibility issues due to topography and curvature of I-20. Approved unanimously.
- Case BAC-26-019: Special exception for electronic changeable copy (ECC) on a monument sign (gas price sign) at 6013 Retail Way. Applicant Sandra Pauline Wright explained the sign will be part of a unified sign agreement for a new development. Approved unanimously.
- Case BAC-26-022: Variance for a telecommunications tower height from 75 ft to 106 ft at 197 Barnwood Drive. Applicant Janice Manley stated Verizon needs the height to add antennas. Some board members questioned whether the hardship was self-imposed, but the majority approved 9-2 (Michael Johnston and Madison Gutierrez voted no).
- Case BAR26-073: Variances for lot area (3,562.5 sq ft vs required 5,000 sq ft) and lot width (37.5 ft vs 50 ft) at 1311 North Jones Street to build a single-family home. The board expressed concern about self-imposed hardship and the relationship between two adjacent lots. Continued to next month.
- Case BAR26-077: Variance to allow an accessory structure (garage/shop) to exceed the primary structure's square footage (2,400 sq ft vs 1,056 sq ft) at 808 Oak Grove. Applicant Matt Kelly and property owner Norman Taft explained the need to store classic cars. Approved 9-2 (Bob Riley and Sandra King voted no).
- Case BAR26-070: Variance for side yard setback from 25 ft to 15 ft for a detached garage at 1701 Baldecay Lane. Applicant cited irregular lot shape, existing home placement, and septic system constraints. Approved unanimously.
- Case BAR26-076: Variance for rear yard setback from 10 ft to 5 ft for a carport at 4209 Inman Court. Applicants Kevin and Audra Morrison demonstrated hardship from a large mature tree that necessitated the setback. Approved unanimously.
- Case BAR26-074: Special exception for a carport in the front yard at 3705 Slade Boulevard. Applicant Ivan Alonso explained hail damage to vehicles. The board found the special exception appropriate and approved unanimously.
- Case BAR26-075: Two requests: (A) Special exception for a carport in the front yard, and (B) Variance for side yard setback at 3705 Camp Bowie Access Road. Special exception A failed 8-3 (Jim Whitten, Sergio Garza, Sandra King, Witt Woolman, Lucretia Powell, Kay Duffy, Eric Ortega, Juan Manuel Acosta voted yes; Michael Johnston, Jana Herrera, Madison Gutierrez voted no). Variance B was approved 10-1 (Jana Herrera voted no).
- Case BAR26-071: Five requests at 2705 Birchill Road South: (A) Special exception for two carports in front yard, (B) Special exception for open fence up to 5 ft, (C) Variance for fence height (5 ft 9 in vs 4 ft), (D) Variance for column height (7 ft vs 5 ft 6 in), (E) Variance for driveway coverage (98.24% vs 50%). The board approved B, C, and D (fence items) unanimously. Items A and E (carports and driveway coverage) were continued to the October meeting.
Key Outcomes
- BAC-26-021: Approved unanimously.
- BAC-26-019: Approved unanimously.
- BAC-26-022: Approved 9-2 (Johnston and Gutierrez opposed).
- BAR26-073: Continued to next month.
- BAR26-077: Approved 9-2 (Riley and King opposed).
- BAR26-070: Approved unanimously.
- BAR26-076: Approved unanimously.
- BAR26-074: Approved unanimously.
- BAR26-075: Special exception A denied 8-3; Variance B approved 10-1.
- BAR26-071: Items B, C, D approved unanimously; Items A and E continued to October meeting.
- Case BAC-26-023: Administratively withdrawn.
Meeting Transcript
Thank you. Good morning. Notice of this meeting has been posted online for at least seventy-two hours. Staff present today are Denisha London, Emily Reyes, Stacey Jones, Gianna Bridges, Trey Qualls, and Mayor Belpina. Chair, will you please call this meeting to order? Yes, good morning. This is Witt Woolman, and the this meeting of the Board of Adjustment will now come to order. It is the 19th of August, twenty twenty six, and I welcome everyone to the Board of Adjustment. This board is a citizen board appointed by the city council. By state law, a minimum of nine members or alternate members must be present to provide a quorum in order to conduct business. Today we have a quorum with all eleven members present. Today's meeting agenda can be found online at WWW.gov. Speaker registration forums for cases on today's agenda should have been turned in prior to the start of this session. Today's public hearing is being documented by cable television and video conference recording, which will be available on the city's website. To facilitate an orderly meeting, I'm asking everyone in the council chamber to turn off the audible alarms on your electronic devices at this time. So we will not be distracted during our meeting. After presenting the facts of the case, the board of adjustment members will have the opportunity to question city staff about the case and any applicable laws or regulations that might apply. When speakers require the services of a translator, all speaker times during those cases will be doubled. After the parties have presented their positions, the board members will then have the opportunity to ask questions of the applicant and any opposition. During this time, all speakers must remember that all dialogue be directed to the board of adjustment only. There is no time limit during this period. After the board members have received answers to their questions, I will close the public portion of the hearing. Board members can discuss the case among themselves and city staff to determine whether or not the application meets or does not meet the criteria for approval. After this discussion, I will ask for a motion to approve, deny, or continue the case. City staff will call for a voice vote from each member. If an application is denied, an applicant will have 10 days in which to appeal to a court of appropriate jurisdiction. For more information on this and additional information on any case on today's agenda, you may contact the board of adjustment at 817-3926 after this meeting. If necessary, a closed executive session may be held with respect to the posted agenda items to enable the board of adjustment to receive advice from legal staff. The first order of business is the approval of the minutes uh from the July 2026 meeting, and we are open for a motion to approve. Move approval. Thank you, Mr. Riley. Do we have a second? Second. Uh Mr. Garza. Oh, Mr. Whitten. You both point each other. All right, Mr. Witten takes it. Second. Uh staff. Could we please perform a roll call vote? Yes. Board member Jim Whitten? Yes. Board Member Sergio Garza. Yes. Board Member Michael Johnston.
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