The city of Arlington's stance on prohibiting private companies from developing parking options near Cowboys Stadium not only provides fewer parking options, it's limiting the options of home owners hoping to move out of the entertainment district.
Residents of a neighborhood just a block away from the new Cowboys Stadium, know they are now living on prime real estate. The owners of 22 homes on Roosevelt Street in Arlington banded together, knowing the day would come when a developer would buy them out.
The neighbors are ready to leave the once quiet neighborhood, saying they are surrounded by construction and the traffic near their homes is nightmare.
"During a concert or game day, you can't go out. They barricade the streets. You have to drive around just to get to the store, it's a hassle," said Erico Andre.
"It's frustrating. I really want to get out here," said another neighbor, Lugene Ofallon.
It seemed their wish had come true. The group negotiated with a developer who planned to build a parking lot on the land, both parties agreed and a contract was signed.
"We've been dealing with a lot of dirt and a lot of messes so we were all excited we finally had an opportunity for everybody to upgrade themselves," Ofallon said.
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Ofallon even went ahead a purchased a new home after the contract was signed. Knowing investors would want to capitalize on the need for parking surrounding the Cowboys Stadium and Rangers Ballpark, the city created an ordinance that prohibits companies to build parking lots in the city's entertainment district unless it was grandfathered in, or it's controlled by the City of Arlington or a venue that seats at least 40,000.
"It's in the entertainment district. What we are trying to do is preserve it's integrity. We don't want every block to be covered with asphault or concrete parking -- so we have put strict restrictions on parking lots," said Arlington Mayor Robert Cluck.
The contract was cancelled and residents say they are back to square one.
Meanwhile, Ofallon is paying two mortgages.
Mayor Cluck said the land surrounding Cowboys Stadium and Rangers Ballpark has increased in value 80 percent in the last three years. He says he's hoping commerical businesses will buy it up and help the city's bottom line.
But residents said they are ready to get out of the construction zone and are losing patience waiting for another offer.
