FlowerMoundGrowth

NOTE: Ms. Mizeur later advocated for development interests against her own former neighborhood - Rippy Road, in 2014. Cole McDowell defaulted as the second of three developer for the Riverwalk in 2008; and the original plan for Lakeside residential rejected as noted here later was approved in 2012 for even denser development, plus apartments, than the Stewart family initially desired.

The Dallas Morning News / September 10, 1997 / Nita Thurman, Denton Bureau

Flower Mound caught in tug of war

Homeowners, developers at odds over rapid growth

FLOWER MOUND - The town logo is a horse grazing beneath the branches of a spreading oak tree, with Dallas skyscrapers in the distance. But the rural tranquillity the logo symbolizes has been breached in Denton County's fastest-growing town.

About 38,000 people live here, twice the population of 10 years ago. And just 40 percent of the town is developed.

The rest is the focus of a territorial tug of war between homeowners intent on maintaining the pastoral charm that attracted them and developers seeking to sell the area's beauty to others.

It is a fight that has grown bitter over the issue of whether to amend the town's 3-year-old master plan to allow denser development.

Homeowners have organized and fought some development plans with fliers warning that greater population density would bring "crime, violence and gangs. " "We've been clipping along at a double-digit growth rate," said Lori DeLuca, whose Voters United for Flower Mound opposes any master plan change that would increase population density.

"Our schools are ridiculously overcrowded. Our roads are overcrowded. It's impossible to get in and out during rush hour.

We've got to slow things down and catch up on our infrastructure. " Builders and business interests, meanwhile, say alarmist homeowners have scared away developers, particularly commercial enterprises badly needed for the town's tax base.

"Absolutely," said Cole McDowell, who has been building in Flower Mound since 1985. "The message is pretty clear. . . . The master plan is the 11th commandment that Moses brought down from the mountain. " Lori Moseley, president of the Flower Mound Chamber of Commerce, is also concerned.

"I believe Flower Mound is being perceived as anti-development," she said. "The word we are hearing . . . is that perhaps this is not a good time to do business in Flower Mound. " Indeed, the balance of power appears to have shifted in the homeowners' favor. Ms. DeLuca's group and a similar one formed by Patsy Mizeur helped oust three of the five Town Council members in May. And already letters are appearing in local newspapers warning incumbents about the 1998 elections.

Some builders said Ms. DeLuca and Ms. Mizeur have brought building to a virtual halt in this town of suburban subdivisions, a few farms and secluded estates along Grapevine Lake.

"Nonsense," said Ms. DeLuca. "There have been 29 requests for amendments to the master plan. We have opposed three - the ones that increased residential density. " Town records show 14 amendments approved, seven withdrawn and eight denied. Of the 14 approved, 13 affected roadways and open space or newly annexed property. One changed low-density residential to retail and a mix of low- and medium-density housing.

Clearly, building hasn't stopped in Flower Mound. New housing is steadily spreading west across open land. New stores and businesses are going up along thoroughfares.

But Mr. McDowell predicted that building will slow once construction now under way is completed.

"What you see now is the result of decisions made three years ago," he said. "Developers who are getting beat up won't make a big investment in this town. Numerous land developers that I have talked to said their deal is their last in this town. " Ms. Mizeur was moved to fight when the town's planning commission recommended changing zoning from one house per acre to 4.3 houses per acre on a wooded 21-acre tract near her home.

"The intent of the master plan was to preserve our rural atmosphere," she said, "and they put certain pockets of estate density in the plan to do that. . . . People here are very passionate about keeping that rural flavor. That's why they moved here. " Blake Reed, who planned to develop the 21 acres, presented a scaled-down plan for about 44 houses to the Town Council in August and asked again to change the master plan.

"The master plan is not a legal document," he told the council.

"It was not intended to be set in stone. . . . To those who say the master plan should not be amended if it results in increased residential density, I say, `Bullfeathers. ' " The Town Council turned his plan down, 3-2, after Ms. Mizeur collected more than 600 signatures on petitions opposing the change.

"It's funny," she said, "but in the thick of all this, I have never said I was against development. We are growing unbelievably, and other builders are following the master plan. It is not necessary to grant special requests. " Mayor Larry Lipscomb likens the flap to the outcry several years ago when Flower Mound put a limit on building permits to avoid a water crisis. The limit was lifted when the town got more water from the Upper Trinity Water Supply District.

Now, Mr. Lipscomb said, the higher-than-expected growth rate is producing new pressures.

"There is pressure on the town to deliver infrastructure and services," he said. "Our schools and roads are crowded. That creates a certain amount of pressure, and pressure is painful. And I guess we have a low pain threshold in this town. But at some point it will all level out again, and things will be fine. " Mr. McDowell agreed that the anti-development sentiment is a growth phase that neighboring cities have gone through.

"Flower Mound is in the process of moving from town to city," he said. "It is unfortunate that we couldn't learn from other cities.

. . . We had things working in the right direction. Now we have taken a detour. " The split between residents and developers opened wide in 1993 when developer Alan G. Stewart proposed a bold new concept for 132 acres that his family owns beside Grapevine Lake.

The proposed Lakeside development would occupy a big chunk of the campus commercial district outlined in the town's master plan.

But Mr. Stewart proposed a mix of commercial and residential zones, parks and open space, stores and restaurants - basically a self-contained village where people could work, live and play.

This early look at "new urbanism" in the Dallas/Fort Worth area didn't get much farther than the drawing board. Residents angrily opposed the density, and Mr. Stewart pulled the request. He declined to comment about the current status of the project.

Some people say opponents to Lakeside threw out the baby with the bath water. The so-called village concept has gained a following elsewhere around the country and has been embraced by many communities.

In Plano, a similar mix of homes, apartments and businesses is planned as a "downtown" center to Legacy Park, the campus-style home of corporate headquarters.

But Flower Mound council member Rick Randall, who won his seat on a promise not to change the master plan, called the Lakeside plan "socialistic. " He said he took a hard look at the new urbanism concept during a San Francisco seminar earlier this year. He wasn't convinced.

"I was horrified, really," he said. "It seemed to work in distressed and abandoned cities, but it does not have a good track record for stand-alone communities. You need a local job base, public transportation, the infrastructure to deliver utilities. "

Ted Reeves said he remains committed to the "preserve Flower Mound" platform that won him a seat on the council last year.

"I am against increasing residential density," he said. "Our tax base already is about 93 percent residential. That is not healthy.

"But that is not to say that I wouldn't vote to change the master plan. . . . If it is changed, there needs to be an economically viable and compelling reason. "

MAP(S): (DMN) Flower Mound. PHOTO(S): (The Dallas Morning News: Kim Ritzenthaler) Lori DeLuca (left) and Patsy Mizeur have successfully fought against developments that would increase population density in Flower Mound.