Apartments planned for assisted living center site near East Lancaster
Property formerly occupied by the Tandy Village assisted living facility may soon get new life as an affordable housing apartment complex, pending a Fort Worth City Council decision.
The proposed community at 2601 Tandy Ave., just off East Lancaster Avenue, will have 64 two- and three-bedroom units, with estimated rental prices ranging from $1,200 to $2,200 a month.
To make way for the project, the property’s owner, Dallas-based Maverick Development Partners, razed the senior citizens’ home, which closed in 2024, and the neighboring George E. Tandy Elementary School, which was built in 1923. Nash Thomas with Maverick Development Partners said the original idea was to preserve the historic school as part of the complex, but the building’s poor condition prevented that.
On Sept. 10, the Fort Worth Zoning Commission approved rezoning the property from CF — community facility to medium-density multifamily. That was despite reservations expressed by some commissioners and nearby residents. That decision will go before the City Council for final approval in October.
Since December, Maverick Development Partners has worked to address resident concerns, with the West Meadowbrook Neighborhood Association acting as the conduit.
Concessions to neighbors included reducing the number of proposed units in the complex by half and shortening the structures from three stories to two. The proposed parking area will be enclosed, and there will be no balconies in order to preserve the privacy of adjacent residents.
In exchange, the developer is asking the city for variances. Wes Hoblit, a consultant working on behalf of Maverick Development Partners, presented those requests to the zoning commission on Sept. 10.
Fort Worth ordinance requires 160 parking spots for an apartment complex this size, but Hoblit said the developer could only accommodate 129 given lot constraints. For the same reason, the developer wants to designate 35% of the property for open space as opposed to the required 45% and have 10-foot setbacks on the property’s north and south sides instead of the required 20 feet.
West Meadowbrook Neighborhood Association President Carol Peters said the community could accept those variances as long as the developer designated the complex for residents 55 years or older, guaranteed that an on-site leasing agent would reside on the property to address security concerns and presented a parking management plan to mitigate anticipated congestion.
Hoblit said it was unlikely the developer could meet those demands. Previously, Maverick’s Thomas told the Star-Telegram the apartments would be marketed to adults 55 and older, but they would not be restricted to that age group. Thomas said he envisioned the complex attracting young professionals seeking an affordable rental option in close proximity to downtown Fort Worth.
The three residents who spoke before the zoning commission in opposition to the development said they feared overflow parking adding vehicles to already crowded streets. They also didn’t believe the apartments would fit with the neighborhood’s single-family character.
Colleen Jones, who has lived across from the Tandy Village property for more than 20 years, said more needed to be done to make nearby East Lancaster Avenue a vibrant, walkable commercial corridor before apartments would make sense in the area. Right now, convenience stores, liquor stores, bars and fast food chains line most of East Lancaseter.
After hearing public comments, Commissioner Jeremy Raines said he was “torn,” and Commissioner Charles Edmonds called the decision to approve or deny rezoning a difficult one, though he said Fort Worth needed affordable housing like what’s being proposed for 2601 Tandy Ave.
In the end, the zoning commission voted 8-2 to approve the rezoning request, paving the way for the development to move forward if it receives the city council’s blessing next month.