Green Line | Farmers Branch Station

[drumguy8800]

Found some master plans about Farmers Branch Station.. pretty interesting

http://www.ci.farmers-branch.tx.us/CityDocuments/pdf/FB%20Station%20Area%20Conceptual%20Master%20Plan.pdf

http://www.ci.farmers-branch.tx.us/Images/Station_Area_for_Web.jpg

[X Factor]

its going to look nice

[rantanamo]

great plan. Isn't that the area of the old PTL church?

[texman]

I love how Farmer's Branch is always threatening to pull out of DART yet they create this giant plan for devevlopment around the new DART Station. Looks good though.

[rantanamo]

If they pulled out of DART, it could always be used as a sanctuary for Chicken owners

[CTroyMathis]

http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showthread.php?t=1742

^Older thread, same topic.

I yanked all the renderings out. I'll post 'em up for easier viewing.

[texman]

The more I look at it, the more I like it. They integrated the parking well, unlike some 'urban' developments.

[darkblood]

Oooh! That looks nice. If they can make Downtown Farmers Branch look like Addison Circle, then we have ourselves a winner!

Now I just hope the city of Farmers Branch is not super-strict about building placement and color like Carrollton or Southlake is. I'd like a little color and variety.

Darkblood
*Arr! No more freeways!*
-2k5

[CTroyMathis]

City cancels deal on land by future station
Farmers Branch: Property near DART site open to other developers
12:00 AM CST on Friday, December 23, 2005
By STEPHANIE SANDOVAL / The Dallas Morning News
Visit: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/city/carrollton/stories/DN-fbdart_23wes.ART.North.Edition2.154dff04.html

Farmers Branch officials have terminated an exclusive agreement for development of 17 acres of city-owned property surrounding the future DART light-rail station.

The decision ended an 18-month partnership with Farmers Branch City Center LP and opens the door for other developers to create the high-density commercial, retail and residential development the city seeks.

City Manager Linda Groomer said it was a mutual decision prompted by changes within Harwood International, the chief partner in the development group, and implementation of zoning this year that will protect the city's vision even with multiple developers.

That form-based zoning, adopted by the City Council in June, puts emphasis on the appearance and placement of buildings, sidewalks, alley streets and landscaping. More traditional zoning focuses mostly on the uses of a building.

"There were some changes at Harwood where they may not have been taking as great a role as they were in the beginning," Ms. Groomer said. "It also gives the city an opportunity to look at different developers.

"I think now that we have the form-based code in place, it's not as critical that a master developer be involved in it. There can be a mix of different developers, and we can move forward with it."

The city gave Farmers Branch City Center exclusive rights in April 2004 to develop the city-owned property within the station area. The area encompasses about 150 acres, about 45 of which are owned by the city. That includes City Hall, the Dr Pepper StarCenter and parkland, leaving about 17 acres available, said Assistant City Manager Greg Vick.

"It was a master development agreement as it related to the city-owned property only," Mr. Vick said. "They had the right to develop the land the city owned in the station area under certain terms and conditions. That didn't prevent any other property owner from developing on their land separately."

The city had acquired the land over the years in anticipation of the rail arrival, which is slated for late 2010.

One of the biggest challenges for redeveloping such areas as the Farmers Branch station is putting enough land together to make a project work, city officials have said. So they acquired land as it became available, hoping to get enough acreage available to encourage developers to take an interest.

Developers are taking interest – even more so now that the city has terminated the exclusive agreement, Ms. Groomer said.

"We're going to be talking to other developers who have experience with transit-oriented development, not just in this area or in Texas but nationally," she said. "We're still moving forward."

[gc]

Interesting turn of events. Wonder what the reason is...

[FoUTASportscaster]

Yeah, I'm curious too.

[darkblood]

Yeah, I'm curious too.

Not to get off track, but I have to ask.

What the [censored] is that icon of yours from?!

And if anyone is curious, my icon is Cat from 'Retarded Animal Babies', when he was a rockin' guitarist.

Anyway, maybe with the diversity of developers for downtown Farmers Branch, we'll have some living arrangements that are a bit more affordable than most New Urbanism neighborhoods. Then again, since the DART rail is running right through the neighborhood... maybe not.

[FoUTASportscaster]

What the [censored] is that icon of yours from?!

Sorry, just now noticed this. It's from a Japanese game show.

[txRNGr]

Any news on this?