Princeton Sends 1503 Long Neck Road To Council, Approves $15,000 School Bash Funding, And approves $15,800 CDC Website

📅 April 25 | 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM
📍 Chaparral Trail (NETT) – Farmersville, TX

Texas Local Weekly, the team behind Princeton Weekly, will be out at Celebrate Trails Day hanging with the community. Stop by, say hi, and grab some stickers, candy, and a few surprises while you're there.

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Community Development Corporation

The Princeton Community Development Corporation met April 15, 2026, and the focus stayed on projects that touch daily life, from how the board gets legal advice to how local families hear about programs and use city spaces. The meeting also affected residents watching a new child safety event, a chamber partnership, and the rollout of a cleaner CDC website.

New Attorney Search Moves Forward

The board voted to let staff look into attorney options after the CDC’s previous legal setup changed. Interim city attorney Kevin Laughlin said the CDC could keep shared counsel, hire a separate firm, or use different lawyers within the same firm. Staff said the board’s bills are separate from the city’s, so any added cost would depend on the contract, not a built-in change.

Child Safety Event Wins Free Community Center Use

Young & Vibrant founder Casey Williams asked for help hosting a child abuse awareness event. The CDC approved use of the Steve and Judy Deffibaugh Community Center on a Saturday at no charge, with staff noting weekend dates must be coordinated around other bookings. Williams said the first event is hoped for in May or early June, with the long-term goal of holding it monthly.

Chamber Update Lays Out Summer and School Support

The Princeton-Lowry Crossing Chamber of Commerce said it is planning its usual community work, including volunteer drives, veteran events, the back-to-school bash, and the mayor’s apprenticeship program. Chamber CEO Beth Wilhite said this year’s school supply effort is aiming for $30,000 and a better backpack, not just a bag, for students. The CDC asked for a full cost breakdown before deciding on funding.

CDC Website Project Gets Green Light

Staff said the CDC’s current web presence is basically a page on the city site, not a full website. The board approved moving ahead with Golden Shovel, a firm that builds economic development sites, for a CDC website at $15,800 this year. Staff said the new site would be built to share updates, explain the CDC’s work, and make it easier for residents and businesses to find information.

Community Center Grant Plan Gets More Review

The board did not take action on the broader community center sponsorship and grant item. Staff asked members to review a new sponsorship form modeled after McKinney’s process before bringing it back. The idea is to make future requests easier to sort through, while still allowing one-off decisions like the free community center use approved earlier in the meeting.

The board also heard updates on sales tax, building permits, the shoreline annexation work, and the move to a five-year rolling budget, along with news that staff member Bree is leaving for a new job in Colorado. The CDC left April 15 with a new legal search underway, a free room approved for a child safety event, a website project moving forward, and more funding and grant details set to return next month.

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Planning and Zoning

The April 20, 2026 Planning and Zoning meeting in Princeton was packed with one big question: what happens to the 1503 Long Neck Road rezoning request and how much proof should developers have to show before a zoning change moves ahead? The discussion touched neighbors near the site, future traffic and drainage concerns, and how new commercial rules could affect residents along U.S. 380 and other city corridors.

Vice Chair Pick Gets Delayed Again

The commission tried to name a vice chair, but the vote got tangled up after multiple names were raised and the room realized the process needed to be reset. In the end, members decided to wait and put both names back on the next agenda. That means the board still does not have a settled backup leader, which matters any time the chair is absent and the meeting needs to keep moving.

Public Speakers Push For Maps, Records, And More Transparency

During public comment, residents asked for a clearer map of White Wing Trails Phase 3C, saying the metes-and-bounds description was too hard to follow. Another speaker questioned eligibility and whether a missing commissioner was properly serving. A third speaker pressed the board to stay neutral and keep asking for the documents it needs. The comments showed growing frustration from residents who want the process explained in plain language.

Consent Agenda Clears A Stack Of Plats

The commission approved a routine batch of items, including minutes and several final plats, such as White Wing Trails phases and other subdivision filings. These approvals help move neighborhood and lot development paperwork forward without much debate. For residents, that means more projects can keep advancing through the city’s development pipeline.

Long Neck Road Rezone Gets More Scrutiny, Then Advances

The board reopened the public hearing on the request to rezone 1503 Long Neck Road from single-family estate to PD-46, after staff said the site is about one acre and the proposed building concept is 5,000 square feet. Members spent most of the hearing talking about traffic, drainage, and a topo survey, which had been requested earlier but were not yet in the packet. Staff said those studies normally come later with the preliminary plat, but the commission can ask for them now if it needs them.

Neighbors Say The Process Still Feels Off

Public speakers raised concerns about how the rezoning had been presented before and questioned whether earlier votes and commissioner eligibility were handled correctly. The city attorney said the hearing had to follow the board’s rules, and the chair limited one speaker to five minutes unless the commission voted to extend it. The exchange left clear tension in the room over fairness, procedure, and who gets to speak for the neighborhood.

Commission Sends Long Neck Road Rezone To Council

After a few failed votes and a procedural reset, the commission finally voted to recommend approval of the Long Neck Road rezoning and send it to City Council. Staff also said the traffic, drainage, and topo work will still come back with the preliminary plat later. For nearby residents, that means the zoning move is not the last stop, and the project will face another round of review before anything can be built.

C2 Height Limits May Change Along Key Corridors

The board also voted to start drafting a text amendment that could raise the height limit in C2 general commercial areas, with staff suggesting 60 feet in some places. Staff said the change could help attract bigger commercial users, like hotels or other taller buildings, especially along U.S. 380, while still allowing the city to carve out exceptions in other areas. The commission backed the idea and asked staff to bring back options for review.

New Planning Staff Step Into The Room

Before adjourning, staff introduced the city’s new planning team: planning manager Parker McDowell, planner Hannah Carrasco, and planning technician Lashana Rich. Officials said the new hires bring experience from several cities and firms. For residents, that means more hands on deck as Princeton keeps dealing with a heavy development workload.

The night ended with one rezoning sent to council, one new zoning rule set in motion, and a vice chair vote pushed to next month. The Long Neck Road case will return in later stages with the required studies, and the commission is expected to revisit the vice chair seat at its next meeting.

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Economic Development Corporation

The April 21, 2026 Economic Development Corporation meeting in Princeton focused on money, growth, and how the board wants to run moving forward. The discussion touched city sales tax, building permits, onboarding for new members, Chamber partnerships, and major back-office decisions that affect how the board handles legal help, its website, and sales tax data. Those choices will shape what residents see in development, services, and local business support over the next few months.

Sales Tax Keeps Climbing
Jim Wehmeier told the board sales tax was up 13% from the same month last year and 5% year to date. He said that usually tracks with population growth until bigger retail projects open. For residents, that points to a growing local shopping base and a stronger local revenue stream without a property tax hit.

Building Permits Rebound Fast
The board also heard that single-family building permits jumped 204% in March, putting the year 24% ahead of last year. Wehmeier said that could mean more than 6,100 new residents over the year if the pace holds. He added that the city counts active water accounts to estimate population, and Princeton may already be past 49,000.

Bree Goodman Morris Is Leaving
Wehmeier announced that Bree Goodman Morris will be leaving for a new job in Boulder, Colorado. Board members thanked her for her work and said she had helped move things forward during her time with the city. The board said it has reached out to SGR for interim help while it looks at next steps.

Board Looks Ahead To Five-Year Budget Planning
Wehmeier said the board will still approve a one-year budget, but staff will now bring a four-year projection with it. He said that is meant to help the board plan for fast growth, tight margins, and future infrastructure costs. The new format is meant to keep the board from getting caught flat-footed as projects stack up.

Corps Of Engineers Park Talks Restart
Wehmeier said the city has restarted talks with the Corps of Engineers about the parks and annexation work tied to the shoreline. He said the city is waiting on a legal description for the annexation package, and he expects the process to take about five years. For residents, that could eventually bring more shoreline area and about 8.5 square miles of ETJ under city oversight.

Albert Lott Is Named Vice Chair
The board elected Albert Lott as vice chair. The vote passed without opposition, giving the board a new second-in-command for the year ahead.

Onboarding Will Roll Out In Pieces
Wehmeier said new board members still need cyber security training and legal onboarding, and the board also may revisit its broader mission training. Members discussed splitting the training into shorter sessions instead of repeating a three-and-a-half-hour session all at once. The goal is to make the material easier to take in without losing the basics on bylaws, procedure, and board duties.

Chamber Pushes Service Projects And School Support
Beth Wilhite, president and CEO of the Princeton Lowry Crossing Chamber of Commerce, walked the board through a busy year of service work, including hydration drives for first responders, veterans’ flag placements, and the Mayor Apprenticeship Program with Princeton ISD and CDC. She said the Chamber’s Back to School Bash is growing too, and the board discussed helping again this year.

Back To School Bash Gets $15,000
The board voted to give $15,000 to the Back to School Bash. Wilhite said the Chamber wants to upgrade the bags and supplies it hands out, and the board talked about keeping the program useful for families while staying within budget. The Chamber said it expects about 2,000 children at the event and will keep building toward a July 25 distribution.

New Website Deal Moves Forward
Wehmeier brought back a website contract with Golden Shovel, a firm that works in economic development sites. He said the new setup would give the EDC and CDC a shared landing page, better tools, and more useful tracking for outreach. The board approved him to execute the contract, and the site switch should give residents and businesses a clearer place to find development information.

Board Wants New Legal Options Reviewed
The board also voted to have Wehmeier research legal options for the corporation. Members discussed whether the EDC should keep sharing an attorney with the city or hire its own counsel. No decision was made on which route to take, but the board wants options brought back for a future meeting.

Sales Tax Analytics Tool Gets A Look
Wehmeier gave an update on HDL, a sales tax analytics service the board can access through the city’s contract. He said it can show where sales tax comes from, help identify top taxpayers, and even help verify whether sales tax is being collected correctly. The board did not take action, but members said it could be a useful extra layer of data as Princeton keeps growing.

By the end of the night, the board had a new vice chair, signed off on a chamber grant, approved a website contract, and asked staff to keep digging on legal representation. Sales tax, permits, and growth numbers all pointed the same way: Princeton is still moving fast, and the board will be back next month with more budget detail, more onboarding plans, and more decisions on legal and operational next steps.

🎉 National Celebrate Trails Day – Chaparral Trail Event
📅 April 25 | 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM
📍 Chaparral Trail (NETT) – Farmersville, TX

Farmersville is joining communities across the country for National Celebrate Trails Day with a morning of outdoor fun for all ages. The event kicks off with a ribbon cutting at 9:00 AM, followed by several trail activities including a 1-mile fun run, jog, or walk, a 10-mile bike ride, and a 30-mile gravel bike ride for more experienced riders.

The celebration highlights the Chaparral Trail and encourages residents to get outside and enjoy one of the area’s most unique outdoor spaces.

Hosted by the Farmersville Parks and Recreation Department, Farmersville Chamber of Commerce, Christian Cycling–Texas, and the Farmersville 4B Committee.

🏙️ Princeton City Council
📅 April 27 | 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Princeton Municipal Center, 2000 E. Princeton St., Princeton, TX 75407
Want the inside track on what’s happening in town? City Council meetings are where local decisions get real.

💼 The Business Toolbox
📅 May 5 | 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM
The Business Center 123 W Princeton Drive Suite 200 Princeton TX
Small business owners, this one’s got your name on it. Social Media Made Simple promises practical tips you can actually use, plus lunch, which frankly never hurts.

🏙️ Princeton City Council
📅 May 11 | 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Princeton Municipal Center, 2000 E. Princeton St., Princeton, TX 75407
Another chance to stay in the loop on city business and see local government in action. Very neighborly, very useful.