The Cottonland Castle at 3300 Austin Ave. will stay in Magnolia’s collection as the unsold property received a special permit Tuesday to resume its operation as a house museum for at least six more months.
The permit includes new conditions meant to mitigate the surrounding neighborhood’s concerns.
Magnolia first applied for the special permit last year for a period of six months with the assumption it was going to sell the property, long-range planning manager Laura Wagstaff said during Tuesday’s plan commission work session.
The castle was listed for sale at $2.9 million in June, and the property was up for auction with Concierge Auctions through Aug. 3.
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The Waco City Council this week approved on first reading a zoning ordinance defining a “house museum” and requiring anyone operating such an attraction to secure a permit and meet parking requirements.
Magnolia spokesperson Katie Keil confirmed in an email that the castle will stay with Magnolia.
“A prospective buyer and Magnolia mutually agreed not to close, and the unique property will not be sold at this time,” Keil said. “This decision is made with much enthusiasm and anticipation as the beloved Castle’s story continues with Magnolia.”
The Gaineses have owned the castle since 2019, undertaking a three-year renovation that became the subject of a six-part “Fixer Upper” series on the Magnolia Network.
Mailed notices from the city received three responses in opposition to the new house museum permit application. Members of the Austin Avenue Neighborhood Association raised concerns about castle tour guests parking along the street, as well as privacy concerns for an adjoining neighbor.
The parking lot for the facility is on Franklin Avenue, where Magnolia provides 55 or more spots for guest parking. Wagstaff said the application proposes one to two tours per hour with 10 guests on a tour, giving a maximum number of guests on site at any time of 30.
“They will provide a parking map upon booking that instructs guests where to park,” she said. “No outdoor speakers, artificial noise or outdoor portion of the tours in order to minimize disruption to the neighborhood. They will provide in-person security during open hours and 24/7 monitoring of the property.”
Any no-parking signs along public streets, such as Austin Avenue, would have to be placed by the city, Wagstaff said. The castle has a historical marker and Waco tourism designation that also draw visitors who are not participating in tours and are not bound to park in the off-street parking lot.
City staff recommended approval of a six-month special permit with the following additional provisions:
- The facility must not create parking problems or traffic congestion.
- Parking for tour guests is limited to off-street parking in the Franklin Avenue lot.
- Hours of operation are limited from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Monday, and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
- The six-month permit will expire April 17, 2024, unless it is renewed prior to its expiration date for a maximum length of one year.
Austin Avenue Neighborhood Association President Austin England spoke briefly during Tuesday’s business session and said he is in agreement with the city’s recommendations, but noted a missing restriction for an adjacent neighbor whose privacy has been adversely affected by tour guests.
“When they’ve had these tours in the past that neighbor has felt that there were tour participants that kept looking into their backyard and it became very invasive,” England said. “We would ask possibly for a 10-15-yard setback as far as where tour participants could go on the property.”
Commissioner Dominic Braus said the lack of privacy has been a hindrance on the neighbor’s use of his property.
Magnolia Chief Financial Officer Brett Moore said he is happy to meet the neighborhood association’s request and has talked to the neighbor about constructing a taller fence.
“We also have a full-time security guard there during tours and we’re going to direct them to keep people away from that side of the property anyway, so those two things address the issue,” Moore said.
Braus made a motion to approve the special permit, “based on staff findings with the additional finding that was not read off that there will be some provision made for either … raising the fence or having some sort of control over people away from the adjoining neighbor.”
