Grapevine council denies proposed mixed-use development near Grapevine Mills

A revised proposal for a mixed-use development near Grapevine Mills with residential and hotel components was denied.

The proposal was denied during a joint meeting between the planning and zoning commission and council May 19. Council voted 4-2 to approve the development, with council members Leon Leal and Sharron Rogers against, but after the planning and zoning commission voted to recommend denial 4-3, a supermajority, or five votes were needed to approve the proposal.

“It’s going to take a mixed-use to get that property developed,” Mayor William D. Tate said. “I thought it was a good compromise; that they’d really worked hard and tried to take what we told them before and correct it.”

The details

Based on the revised proposal for 28.7 acres near Grapevine Mills, the development would include up to 248 multifamily units and a 222-room six-story Sandman Signature Hotel. Joel Behrens, managing director, DFW market leader at Trammell Crow Company, said further development on the property could bring the number of hotel rooms to 750 spread across three different hotels.

The Sandman Signature Hotel would also include a 275-seat full-service restaurant, 4,200 square feet of banquet and meeting space and a 1,000-square-foot fitness center, Director of Planning Services Erica Marohnic said.

The projected annual tax revenue for the revised proposal was $2.9 million.

Some context

Council previously denied a similar mixed-use proposal from Trammell Crow in July 2024, which included 296 multifamily units.

“We’ve taken the last 18 months or so to listen, work with staff, meet with elected officials and really try to put together a plan that meets the vision and needs of the city,” he said.

Behrens said the property has been challenging to develop because of deed restrictions, which limit the types of uses that can be built on the site. He added that Trammell Crow has worked with Simon Property Group to help modify some of the deed restrictions.

What they’re saying

Council member Duff O’Dell spoke in favor of the project, citing that it provided a good mix of uses for the area.

“I think it is a very ambitious and well-planned project,” O’Dell said. “I think it’s a great example of what a true multiuse project should be.”

Leal voiced opposition to the project because of the inclusion of multifamily units.

“I’m not a big fan at this particular time of having more apartments in Grapevine,” Leal said. “I think we’re at a point where we don’t need more apartments, we need more single-family, and like we’ve heard, we don’t have a lot of space.”