Lewisville City Council awarded a contract to Irving-based Sundt Construction in December to construct an extension to Corporate Drive for $43 million. Project details also include new street paving, sidewalks, trail improvements, drainage work and water improvement from Railroad Street to Huffines Boulevard.
Corporate Drive starts in Flower Mound; runs through Carrollton, Castle Hills and The Colony; and ends in Plano. The Lewisville portion would eventually connect with Carrollton Parkway, making it a regional thoroughfare, according to documents.
“Once completed, it will provide a continuous east-west thoroughfare,” Lewisville City Engineer David Salmon said. “In Lewisville specifically, it will provide an alternate route to Business 121 with access to the Sam Rayburn Tollway and points east.”
The overview
The project’s original construction dates back to 2006 for what is now segments six and seven, which were completed near Castle Hills and Windhaven.
Segment one was finished in 2013.
Plans for the last four segments started more than a decade ago, Lewisville Mayor TJ Gilmore said. A bulk of the funding has came through the North Central Texas Council of Governments regional toll revenues. The first funding was $40 million in 2010, but the estimated cost rose to $50 million in 2020.
An agreement between Lewisville and the council of governments had a December deadline to award the contract for segments two and three, according to documents. Sundt’s winning bid includes funding for possible contingency issues or change orders that may arise during construction work.
Gilmore said it’s been a partnership between the city, Denton County and the council of governments to make the project come to fruition, despite the delays that have happened over the years.
“It’s been an extremely long process,” Gilmore said. “It’s been in our master roadway plan for many years, but as far as this actual construction, it’s been over a decade.”
Jeffrey C. Neal, senior program manager with the council of governments, said hurdles have included working with the Army Corps of Engineers and railroads for a bridge to cross over the Trinity River. Another hurdle has been the need for environmental studies of the wetlands and bodies of waters surrounding the project.
“It’s a major east-west spine for the community,” Gilmore said. “When you talk about roadways for people to get from point A to point B, this unlocks lands and property that [is] so accessible that it makes it commercially viable to do something with it.”
What they're saying
“This road [will offer] tremendous advantages for businesses, making them easily within reach of a broader audience and fostering continued economic growth," said Lori Fickling, Lewisville Area Chamber of Commerce president and CEO.
“To have an additional route is going to be very helpful. This will offer a parallel route and really a more direct route between a number of critical destinations," Neal said.
Looking ahead
Salmon said Corporate Drive could also provide relief on Round Grove Road or give drivers an alternate route to Business 121 in case of traffic incidents.
Segments two and three will deliver a four-lane divided roadway and include a 2,000-foot-long bridge across the Trinity River.
These segments will be finished by 2027, city officials said.
However, Sundt officials said segments two and three are projected to be completed several months earlier than the city’s timeline calls for it to be done.
Segments four and five would connect to Carrollton Parkway, which would eventually turn into Windhaven Parkway near the Castle Hills area.
Construction could start as soon as 2025. The city of Carrollton will work with Lewisville on segment five.
The Corporate Drive expansion project will connect Flower Mound to Plano without drivers needing to use a toll road, Lewisville officials said.
“It strongly connects our Castle Hills neighborhood to the rest of Lewisville,” Gilmore said.
Dates to know
- February 2024: Work scheduled to begin on segments two and three.
- March/April 2024: Lewisville City Council expected to review, award bid for work needed on segments four and five.
- August 2026: Segments two and three expected to be completed.
- 2026-27: Segments four and five estimated to be completed.
