The first phase of construction on a sprawling residential and commercial development in Willow Park is set to begin this spring.
Willow Park North, the name given to the area by developer Kyle Wilks, will take shape as construction begins on the mixed-use development this spring, said Kristin Peaks, a public relations director for Wilks Development.
Residential buildings to be constructed in Willow Park North include 110 townhomes, 208 multi-family apartments and 97 single-unit homes.
Commercial development planned for the area includes a hotel, an amphitheater and a community events center, Peaks said.
Under current plans, the community events center will have a clubhouse, amenities center, tennis courts, a basketball court, volleyball courts and a pool, she said.
The 230-acre development – to be located behind Texas Health Resources hospital – will include several green spaces.
“Willow Park North will be positioned along the Elm Fork Trinity River, with easy access to multiple walking trails and parks,” Peaks said. “The goal is to maintain the natural beauty of the land.”
The development has been gestating since Oct. 2016, when the Willow Park City Council approved Wilks’ plans to build a mixed-use development on the land formerly occupied by the Trinity Meadows Raceway.
The city council also voted to create a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ) to finance the project.
A TIRZ is a section of land where the assessed value of all property in the zone is frozen at its current value, and taxes collected are used to fund public works projects and “other projects benefiting the zone,” according to Willow Park’s TIRZ documents.
The city will realize revenue from the TIRZ over the next 25 years: For the first 10 years that the TIRZ is in effect, the city would receive base taxes, with 25 percent of revenue from the project to go into the city’s general fund. Wilks Development would keep the other 75 percent.
For the next 15 years after, the city would still keep base taxes along with 50 percent of the project’s revenue going into the general fund, according to the TIRZ documents.
Another Wilks Development project – the Shops at Willow Park – is nearing completion, and its various tenants are setting dates for grand openings.
More information on grand openings for individual businesses in the shopping center can be found by searching for the Shops at Willow Park on Facebook.
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