We analyze sites early to identify physical and political risks for your project. Applicable master plans, utilities, roads and access, existing encumbrances, environmental concerns, zoning, permitting, and political and community alignment are all taken into account to give school districts clear insight to guide development decisions from day one.

We guide development projects all the way through required zoning changes and variances. The process starts with community and municipal outreach to gain support and alignment for the project and is followed by formal applications. Finally, we present to Planning Commissions and City Councils to secure any discretionary approvals your project needs. We are well-versed in zoning changes, PUDs, variances, conditional use permits, and more.

State-level support is built into the Local Government Code in Section 212.902. At a school district’s request the State requires municipalities to come to the table to establish district-wide development standards agreements, commonly referred to as Inter-Local Agreements (or ILAs), for instructional campuses. No more individual zoning changes for each and every school campus. Instead, we collaborate with the local municipality on the front end to formalize a single set of development standards applicable across every instructional campus. That’s built-in predictability, reliability, and efficiency for your bond planning, campus design, and development permitting efforts moving forward. Even if the municipality adopts a brand new zoning code, wholesale, your established ILA locks in your development rules. We have found that these State-supported ILA’s are one of the most effective and most underused tools available to school districts.

We coordinate directly with municipal staff and design consultants across zoning, transportation, environmental, drainage, utilities, and more to ensure efficient resolution on staff comments and permit approvals.

We can guide your project from site feasibility to the selection and coordination of all project design professionals (engineers, architects, planners, etc.), staying involved all the way through final acceptance.