Black’s BBQ Owner Seeks a Flag 2.4 Times New Braunfels’ Limit

The plan would put a 96-square-foot U.S. flag above a corridor shared by homes and businesses. City staff recommends approval with two conditions.

By Comal.News Growth Desk · Source-linked local reporting

Published August 24, 2026 at 5:38 PM CDT2 min read

Proposed · Hearing Aug. 27

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Editorial illustration of a very large blank flag hanging from a long pole beside a road, surrounded by cactus, scrub, fencing and flag-mounting hardware. — Illustration: An oversized blank flag drapes across a roadside flagpole structure in a Hill Country landscape.Original editorial illustration; not a photograph and does not depict the reported event or an exact property.Comal.News Visual Desk · Original illustration · Source ↗ · Comal.News original illustration ↗

Drivers and nearby residents along Loop 337 and East Common Street would see a prominent 60-foot flagpole carrying a 96-square-foot U.S. flag if the board approves the plan.

The Aug. 6 application moves to a public hearing Aug. 27 with New Braunfels planning staff recommending approval, provided the display is limited to an official U.S. flag and an abandoned restaurant sign pole is removed.

New Braunfels generally limits government flags to 40 square feet. The requested 96-square-foot flag is 2.4 times that standard, according to the city’s comparison table.

The roughly 1.75-acre restaurant property has about 298 feet of frontage on Loop 337 and 224 feet on East Common Street. The staff report describes commercial and residential property around the site and says the proposed pole is intended to create a prominent display along both roads.

Applicant 24/7 Design PLLC filed the alternative sign plan on behalf of property owner Kent Blacks New Braunfels Holdings LLC. The proposal places the pole about 50 feet from the East Common Street property line and about 60 feet from the Loop 337 property line.

The city’s usual flagpole limit is 25 feet, but the property’s C-1B zoning allows a ground-mounted pole for a nonresidential use to reach the district’s 75-foot building-height limit. The proposed pole is therefore within the height allowed at this site; the requested flag size is the part requiring the alternative plan.

Planning staff’s second condition would require removal of an abandoned pole structure that previously advertised Johnny Carino’s and Gennaro’s. The property also has a separate freestanding restaurant sign and smaller flags mounted on the building.

How to Follow the Decision

The New Braunfels Zoning Board of Adjustment meets at 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 27, in the City Hall Council Chambers, 550 Landa St. The amended agenda lists CS26-0262 as a public hearing and provides a citizens’ communication period.

The board’s recorded action will establish whether the plan advances and which conditions apply. If it is approved, later permit and inspection records should establish when the abandoned structure comes down and when the new pole can be installed.

From the source record

CITY STAFF REPORTAlternative Sign Plan CS26-0262

Maximum flag size of 96 square feet; maximum flagpole height of 60 feet.

City of New Braunfels ↗

The staff report identifies the requested dimensions and recommends approval with two conditions.