The Arlington Planning and Zoning Commission approved on Nov. 12 an affordable cottage community with eight townhomes that supporters said will provide good workforce housing in the southeast Arlington area. The vote was 8-1 with Commissioner Derek Carter voting no.
The price of the townhomes, arranged as four duplexes, is forecast to be $219,000 and buyers will get $25,000 in home and first-time homebuyer assistance, supporters said.
“This is a true opportunity to have a home, a 1,600-square-foot home, three bedrooms, two baths, with a yard, a two-car garage, newly built, and be able to afford to get into it,” Arlington Realtor Georgie Zang, a supporter of the project, told the commission. “The Arlington home buyers program does educate these buyers as well, so they understand home ownership and what’s going to be required. I’m very excited about this. There are only eight of these. We will have demand that will far exceed this. But this truly does give a workforce housing product, a nice product in an area that could use a little bit of something.”
Zang touted the townhomes’ affordability.
“We’re going to build this project and sell it for $137 a square foot,” Zang said. “That is prices that we offered in 1990.”
The project previously had been considered by the commission and the Arlington City Council. The project will return to the City Council for consideration on Dec. 9. On Aug. 6, City Council voted 2-7 to deny the project.
On July 17, 2024, the commission recommended approval by a vote of 8-1-0, with some stipulations before the council later rejected it.
The development at 1119 Dan Gould Drive is on approximately 0.654 acres of land adjacent to Mansfield Summit High School to the east and the city of Mansfield to the south and west. The property is owned by the Development Corporation of Tarrant County.
Carter said he thinks the project is not in line with other properties in the area that have an established, more agriculture-friendly zoning. He said some people have animals such as goats on their properties.
“I really just don’t like the project because it’s giving up a really coveted zoning classification,” Carter said. “I spoke to residents today, none of them, all of them were saying ‘absolutely not.’ I said earlier, one of them really thought the case was dead. And I said, ‘no,’ it’s revitalized. It’s coming back to us tonight.”
Carter said none of the people he talked to were aware the case had returned for consideration.
“There’s a lot of people out there that have really valued their little ranchette, and now they’re going to have all this density next to them or surrounding them. I really think it’s not an appropriate use of the land. I think we should protect people’s zoning classification and let the peace remain out there.”
Carter also cited traffic concerns.
“This will add a lot of cars coming up and down the street. Cooper is very dangerous right there. One of the people today said that they hear that daily, the crashes out on Cooper Street, and they cringe.”
Assistant city attorney Galen Gatten told the commission that a vote on the project would not affect the existing zoning for other properties in the neighborhood.
Commissioner Robert Blake said he liked the design of the project.
“One thing that I really like about these is having the garages in the front like this makes it where these townhomes are going to be taken care of much more than when you have a storage room in the back, and you park in the back under an awning,” Blake said. “I’m actually excited to see these, and I think it’s a really good use of this property.”
Lance Murray is a freelance contributor covering business for the Arlington Report.
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