City approves location for VISD’s new school

The Vernon City Commissioners gave their approval for Vernon ISD’s new elementary school in a meeting last week.
VISD had requested a rezoning from single family residential to community facilities of approximately 25.11 acres at 2110 Stadium Drive. She said the city’s Planning & Zoning Committee had approved the request in a Jan. 11 meeting, with no opposition voiced.
The commission was presented with the proposed zoning change. Commissioner Dustin Fraticelli questioned why the rezoning did not include the existing church on the corner.
“I thought it was going away?” he asked.
“That’s up in the air,” Wilkinson said, adding that the zoning change was not for the church. She said if the school bought it, then they would need to apply for another zoning change.
Commissioner Don Aydelott said he’d heard concerns over infrastructure — including water runoff and the streets.
Wilkinson said those issues had been discussed with VISD and they were handling them, and additional possible drainage issues. She added the school’s engineers had been easy to work with.
Aydelott asked about the recent rezoning north of the school, for a proposed retirement housing development.
Wilkinson said that development had “kind of stalled.”
“Those are two big projects going on, and all of this water is going to the same place,” he said, asking if the two companies engineers were working together.
City Manager Marty Mangum said one reason the project had stalled was the city wanted to see that the infrastructure was correct before approving building permits. Wilkinson said that company had switched engineers and they had received no updated plans.
The rezoning for the new school was approved on a motion from Fraticelli.