Will this residential neighborhood in far south Fort Worth get a new rental community?
Plans to build a 151-unit rental community in far south Fort Worth squeezed past the city’s zoning commission Wednesday afternoon.
NexMetro, an Arizona-based developer, hopes to build a “cottage style” complex at the northwest intersection of Altamesa Boulevard and Village Parkway, about a mile west from Interstate 35W.
The firm and its consultants pitched the project to city planners and zoning staff as a boon for the area and the city. The 150-plus residences, they argue, will help lure highly sought retailers to the neighborhood; the complex will also provide much-needed capacity to an increasingly expensive rental market.
“We feel that this is an appropriate land use at this location,” said Travis Clegg, a director at Westwood Professional Services, a civil engineering consultancy hired by NexMetro.
City zoning staff had deemed the complex an inappropriate use of the site. Officials reasoned that the property’s existing zoning, neighborhood commercial — allowing restaurants, banks, bookstores and similar businesses — better served the community.
“The area includes at least five neighborhoods,” zoning staff remarked in its report. “And maintaining neighborhood commercial zoning would provide convenient services to existing residents.”
Clegg challenged the city’s analysis, and noted that the developer planned to retain some of the plot’s commercial frontage.
“I’ve never seen a use like this listed as not compatible with the surrounding uses that we have around it,” Clegg said.
Zoning commissioners, without much debate, ultimately waved the proposal through to city council, recommending approval in a 7-4 vote. No opponents shared remarks.
