A massive new development approved this week in Flower Mound could support 20,000 new residents along with stores where they shop and offices where they work.
The site is a rare 1,000 acres of vacant land surrounding all four corners of a major intersection at US 377 and FM 1171 near I-35W in far west Flower Mound.
Property Owner Jack Furst assembled the land in 22 different transactions over the years.
“You have one landowner which is great. And you have one town that’s really looking for a legacy project. And when you put those two together it should be quality deluxe. And what we want to do out there is create a vibrant mixed-use community with a lot of open space where modern life is occurring, where people are connecting with nature and have a blast,” Furst said.
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Residents in the booming subdivisions of far west Flower Mound have been waiting for commercial development to come their way.
James Johnson lives in the Trailwood community just west of the new project off Highway 1171.
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“You want the basic things like milk? We head to go to Kroger on Long Prairie, about 10 miles away from here,” he said. “It would be nice to have things like some groceries or gas stations.”
After years of planning, that’s what the town of Flower Mound approved this week for the Furst property.
FM 1171 is already a 6-lane road through the property extending from I-35E in Lewisville all the way to I-35W west of Flower Mound Ranch.
The Texas Department of Transportation plans a new US 377 bridge over 1171.
“The western gateway to Flower Mound will soon have a very urban expression flyover interchange,” Furst said.
His plan calls for 3,000 single-family homes, 5,000 apartments and large office and retail areas.
“This is an opportunity for us to create really something spectacular for the town, something spectacular for its people, sticking with our values of modern living on the prairie,” Furst said.
Nathan Bryan lives in the nearby Canyon Falls neighborhood.
“I'm very excited about it, honestly. It takes me about half an hour to get to any grocery store,” Bryan said.
Some neighbors voiced opposition to the possibility of 5,000 apartments in the development.
Rules were added to require substantial office and commercial development at the site to support the need for residential before all those apartments could be constructed.
“I think that the town council did a great job putting controls around how the development of apartments would occur,” Bryan said. “A lot of the members of this community spent a lot of time asking for quality development and I think that’s what this project represents.”
Furst currently lives in Flower Mound’s Lakeside development on the east side of Grapevine Lake. It includes a similar mix of homes, stores and offices, but Furst said his project will have more parks and open space and a different flavor.
“We're really going to try to create this urban expression on the prairie,” he said.
And he intends to rename it Furst Ranch.
Completion may span 40 years.
