A bright vision for the athletic complex connected to Valley Creek Church’s college campus will likely not be as bright as the church was hoping for.
Flower Mound’s Planning and Zoning Commission recommended denial of the church’s request for an exception to the town’s outdoor lighting ordinance for its athletic complex Monday evening.
The request asked for an increase from the previously-approved lighting of 20 foot-candles, the town’s limit that can be compared to lighting in a living room or a dimly-lit warehouse, to 42.6 foot-candles.
Other examples of lighting around 42 foot-candles includes office lighting, study spaces, gymnasiums and commercial kitchens.
According to Brad Lanham, executive pastor of operations at Valley Creek Church, the increased lighting will increase safety by improving depth perception, peripheral vision and the visibility of balls, objects and other people.
The church hopes it will prevent potential trips, collisions and falls.
“20 foot-candles is very dim lighting,” he said. “The whole reason we’re asking for this is for the safety of our students.”
Commissioners were concerned increased lighting could bother nearby neighbors, since the future college campus is located near residential areas in the former Trietsch Memorial United Methodist Church’s Family Life Center.
According to P&Z Chair Gregory Schultz said the commission received a number of emails, later revealed as 19, with concerns about the request, including one from the neighboring homeowners association.
The sport courts will be located on the southern part of the property, along Dixon Lane.
Lanham said the church plans to use ALS shielded lighting, which is dark-sky compliant lighting that projects in one direction and prevents light from escaping horizontally.
It allows the church to amplify the light on its own property while still remaining compliant with the town’s lighting ordinance in other ways: all lights are 40 feet from any neighboring property line and no more than 0.4 foot-candles of light shine on the property line adjacent to a residentially zoned property.
Lanham said the lighting will not be anything like the Marcus High School football stadium lighting, which is well over 100 foot-candles.
“You can look at the property line and see that we’re meeting the standard,” he said. “That means the light is hitting the field, but it’s not spilling out.”
Lanham believes the request would not create a nuisance because it would not affect neighboring residential properties, there would not be a disability glare or light intrusion, and the change would not affect the aesthetic of the church’s overall already-approved plan for the college campus.
“We truly are working to beautify the area, and we believe we are enhancing what that property looks like,” said Lanham. “[Our students] have very full loads, and they’re young men and women of character that we believe are going to be good neighbors.”
According to Lanham, the athletic fields will only be accessible to the Valley Creek Church students, which is about 65 right now, not the entire church. The lights will only be turned on when the complex is in use, which is not expected to be high, but could be as late at 11 p.m.
P&Z Vice Chair Jason Hobbs asked if the church had thought about using more lights to better cover the courts without having to increase the foot-candles so much, but Lanham said the church was pretty far into the process when the problem came up.
“The chances of this passing are very slim, but I understand they may want to work with neighbors and maybe they could come up with a [more reasonable] plan,” said Hobbs. “I think this is just not the right plan.”
Lanham also said the church will be mitigating noise with fencing and other screening materials that absorbs the sound of pickleballs being hit.
According to the town, an inspection can be done by the town if concerns from neighboring residences arise about possible nighttime lighting violations. However, commissioners were concerned an approval to the exception could set a dangerous precedent.
“Religious uses can exist in any zoning, so this can have very significant impacts,” said commissioner Michelle Jackson. “There are churches all over Flower Mound, adjacent to neighborhoods, and if we approve this exception, how many more are going to want to build a pickleball court and we’re going to have to [approve] every one.”
Commissioners were also worried about allowing the exception without knowing whether the church’s mitigation plans would be sufficient for the neighboring residential properties or not.
“These are projections,” said commissioner Ryan Geddie. “The only way we’ll know is after it gets built.”
With the recommendation of denial from P&Z, the plan will proceed to town council, but will need a supermajority vote of four to override P&Z and approve the exception.
If denied by town council, the campus will still have lighting at the sport courts, but it will be maxed out at 20 foot-candles, rather than the requested 42.6 foot-candles.
