Katy’s city council came together to approve a new process for approval of preliminary and final plats, as well as other subdivision regulations, after the matter had been deferred from the October 12 council meeting by Ward B Councilmember Michael Meihls. Under the new procedure, final plat approvals will no longer come to city council for approval but may be approved by the City Planning Department, if they are compliant with city codes and zoning regulations. Variances will still require separate approval.

Mayor Pro Tem Gina Hicks had said the change was needed in order to speed up the approval process, stating in the October 12 meeting that waiting for council approval – usually a formality – could delay a project for up to 60 days.

City Planner Rachel Lazo spoke to council, saying that the city planning department has been making increased efforts on transparency over the past year, That includes the addition of live streaming of city planning and zoning meetings – a measure that was unanimously approved in the early part of the evening’s meeting. Lazo described the city’s new website features which will make the public more aware of proposed projects and what stage they are currently in. On the website, under “government,” there is a sub-tab labeled “development” which features “new development tracking sheets,” which will show documents such as certificates of occupancy, all ongoing commercial permits that have been applied for, all CPZ board items, zoning and any other items that would normally be brought before council. An interactive map is being developed and is expected to be live in the next month, which will show development areas around the city, Lazo said.

Councilmember Johnston Dietz asked for clarification that the procedural change was restricted to plat approval and did not apply to projects such as approval for a battery energy storage system. Lazo said that kind of project is “separate and apart” from the requested change and that such a project would still require council approval since it would be a zoning issue with a separate approval process. Changes in classifications from residential to commercial would also still come to council for approval, Lazo said.

Councilmember Meihls questioned the designation of the community development director, or their designee, as the person responsible for approving plats, pointing out that those positions are not elected officials who are responsible to the voters. Meihls recommended that the ordinance specify that the designation would be made by the mayor or his designee. “That still allows the public to have somebody that they have elected to have oversight on this,” he said. Mayor Pro Tem Hicks expressed confidence in the city staff to make these decisions. The motion was amended to reflect the inclusion of the terminology “designee” where applicable, while Meihls’ motion to have the mayor name the designee failed.

Mayor Thiele also extended special recognition to Tompkins High School student Phoebe Cho, who is the “Best in Show” winner in the 2026 Katy Rice Harvest Festival art contest for her work, “Land of the Free,” which was on display at the beginning of the meeting. (see related story on page 8).