How this old gravel mine may become Fort Worth’s hottest transit-oriented development
Today, it’s a mostly barren stretch of land just off Loop 820 in east Fort Worth — a former sand and gravel mining area that was dug up decades ago, and then left vacant.
But developer Ken Newell is ambitiously working to build on the property a mixed-use neighborhood known as Trinity Lakes.
The project incorporates an existing 15-acre lake that was formed long ago by rainwater filling one of the mining pits. Newell envisions the lake being surrounded by town homes, a grocery store, retail shops and pubs — all within walking distance of regional hike-and-bike trails connecting Fort Worth to Dallas, and a new Trinity Railway Express commuter train station.
“It will be a place where people can go and get out of the weather and get a cup of coffee before they get on the train,” he said.
After years of talk, city leaders and transit officials are ready to join with Newell and build the project at the northeast quadrant of Loop 820 and Trinity Boulevard.
Transit ‘a long time coming’
A tax-increment financing district, which was formed by the city to help pay for construction of utilities, roads and other infrastructure in the area, approved earlier this month a development contract for Trinity Lakes. The contract covers construction of a new sewer line and a road connecting Trinity Boulevard to the planned train station, at a cost of up to $6.2 million.
The developer, Newell Companies, will be authorized to do the work and seek reimbursement from the city.
“It has been a long time coming,” Fort Worth Councilwoman Gyna Bivens, whose district includes Trinity Lakes, said in an email. “I find the idea of transit-oriented development coming to the east side thrilling.”
Bivens, who serves on the tax-increment financing board, added that the property “is a perfect fit for a rail station.”
The Trinity Railway Express already runs along the tracks that form the northern boundary of the Trinity Lakes property. Commuter trains whiz by dozens of times per day, carrying passengers from downtown Fort Worth to Dallas.
Newell, a former Fort Worth transit board member, has enlisted the help of Trinity Metro to build a new Trinity Railway Express station on the property. The station is expected to cost $6 million, with the developer and the transit agency splitting the cost.
Construction of the station is being held up somewhat by the bidding process. Initial bids came in too high than what was budgeted for Trinity Lakes, Trinity Metro officials said.
Officials are looking for ways to get the price of building the station down. They also want the construction project to include double-tracking the Trinity Railway Express line in that area, so that trains can run more frequently.
Newell is optimistic the challenges the project faces in the bidding process are minor and can be overcome.
The North Central Texas Council of Governments, which is the region’s official planning body, has applied for up to $47 million in federal dollars to make improvements up and down the 34-mile long Trinity Railway Express line, and some of those funds could be used to prepare the Trinity Lakes area for development, officials said.
Fort Worth infill growth
The Trinity Lakes project is in an area along the Trinity River bottoms that was once too remote for residential growth, but is now prospering. The area features good access to Texas 183 and Precinct Line Road in Hurst, Interstate 30 heading to Arlington and Dallas and Loop 820 in Fort Worth.
The Texas Department of Transportation is in the midst of a multi-million-dollar expansion of freeways in the area, including flyovers connecting Texas 121 and Loop 820 on the western edge of the Trinity Lakes project.
About 3,200 single-family homes have already been built in the area, including homes in the Lakes of River Trails neighborhood just south of Hurst — and just east of the Trinity Lakes project. Eventually, the area could be home to as many as 12,000 people, Newell said.
The land surrounding the Trinity Lakes project is 1,600 acres. It’s mostly flat, other than the several dozen ponds and small lakes left by decades of mining.
Although many of the nearby residential areas feature typical brick, single-family homes with grass lawns, the Trinity Lakes project would include multi-family housing and a new network of streets designed to equally accommodate cars, bicycles and pedestrians.
Hundreds of trees would be planted as part of a broader landscape plan. And, Newell said, there is plenty of room not only for apartments but also a grocery store, pharmacy and other shops and restaurants — all surrounding a tiny, charming lake.
The Trinity Lakes train station would replace the nearby Richland Hills station, a popular park-and-ride lot less than a mile to the west.
Richland Hills voters opted in 2016 to leave Trinity Metro, citing a lack of satisfaction with transit services in their city. Trinity Metro has already notified Richland Hills of plans to close that city’s train station, once the Trinity Lakes station is up and running.
As one door for transit-oriented development closes, another opens up.
This story was originally published August 17, 2020 at 5:30 AM.
