These historic Fort Worth apartments may become affordable housing. Neighbors are wary.
The developer who wants to overhaul a historic apartment complex in Crestwood and rebuild the property as affordable 55-plus housing sought to ease concerns from skeptical neighbors Monday.
Around 100 people packed a church to hear from Dallas-based Ojala Holdings and nonprofit Fort Worth Housing Solutions about their plans for Crestwood Place Apartments.
No definitive plans exist for the 90-year-old complex at 3900 White Settlement Road. But once developed, half of the units will be reserved for those making between $40,000 to $80,000 per year, with the rest being rented at market rates, said Matt Vruggink, a partner with Ojala Holdings.
The rents for the whole complex will be in the range of $1,200 to $4,000 per month, Vruggink said.
Crestwood Place Apartments were built in the 1930s, with other buildings added in the 1980s. The complex has 114 units, but city zoning allows up to 210 units to be built on the 8.75-acre property.
Deed restrictions require the project to be developed as a 55-and-older community upon any reconstruction, Vruggink said. Fort Worth Housing Solutions has also identified a need for more affordable housing for people 55 or older.
It’s not clear how many units would be built. Vruggink and Mary-Margaret Lemons, who is president of Fort Worth Housing Solutions, said at the Crestwood Neighborhood Association meeting that they wouldn’t exceed the 210 units allowed by current zoning. Any changes to that zoning or waiver requests would have to go through a public process, Vruggink said.
It also isn’t known what the new apartment complex would look like. The pipes, fixtures, stoves and other amenities in the units are past their useful life, so any future complex will involve tearing down the existing structure and building from scratch, Lemons said.
She added that the developers are open to considering ways to preserve the look and feel of the current complex.
“We will work with the architects to maintain green space and legacy tress, while also meeting the housing and parking needs of the residents.” she said.
Still, some residents expressed skepticism about the developer’s motives.
“What your proposing sounds feasible, and sounds good. I don’t believe it,” said Joe Bailey, a 40-year Crestwood resident.
Speaking after the meeting, Bailey said the property is a prime piece of real estate. He said it didn’t make sense that anyone would want to invest in such a project without knowing they’d get a healthy return.
Vruggink acknowledged that skepticism but urged residents to look at Ojala and Fort Worth Housing Solutions’ track records. The two groups have partnered on 12 developments across the city, including The Standard-River District complex, with 292 units at 5200 White Settlement Road.
“We do what we say, and we say what we do, or else you can’t do the third, fourth or 12th,” Vruggink said. He pointed to the meeting as evidence Ojala and Fort Worth Housing Solutions want to be good neighbors and listen to the community.
The meeting helped clarify the developer’s intent, said Lloyd Colegrove, president of the Crestwood Neighborhood Association.
“Fear is a constant. We need to manage that fear through gaining understanding and engagement,” he said, while adding his organization is developing a community oversight committee to keep up on the project and inform residents of updates.
This story was originally published June 6, 2023 at 12:01 PM.
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