Town balances rural roots and modern luxury

Stately homes tucked away in alcoves of gated communities, lush green links, and an eclectic mix of business professionals, sports heavyweights and other stars are often the first images North Texans conjure when they think of Westlake. But this small town, now a magnet for big business as much as for residents, has a past dappled with challenges and successes as varied as its inhabitants.

The Town of Westlake was first settled in 1847, when Missourians Charles and Matilda Medlin moved to the area with about 20 other families. The community grew under the shade of the Cross Timbers, as stagecoaches, trains and eventually cars crisscrossed the landscape. But in the 1950s, big changes came to the region, including the creation of Lake Grapevine and the arrival of Dallas lawyer J. Glenn Turner, who eventually purchased 2,500 acres of land along Hwy. 114, naming it the Circle T Ranch. It was Turner and some neighbors who, on Dec. 27, 1956, made the decision to incorporate as Westlake.

About two decades later, oil millionaire Nelson Bunker Hunt purchased the Circle T Ranch and continued its reputation for lavish parties and prominent guests. His fun was short-lived, though; by 1989 the ranch was for sale, and in 1993, Ross Perot Jr. took up residence.

If Turner was the most important person in Westlake's founding, Perot may be the most important in its recent history, for after purchasing about 2,300 acres of the Circle T, he went on to amass 17,000 acres that he has since turned into the master-planned, mixed-used community of AllianceTexas. Westlake to this day is affected by the Circle T Ranch projects under the Perot company Hillwood Development, its ventures having included Fidelity Investments and the exclusive housing and golfing community of Vaquero. And it was Perot's development plans that were largely blamed for the most controversial period of the town's history, played out in court battles and newspaper headlines at the end of the '90s.

A 1997 article from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram lays out the basics: Perot presented grand plans for development on Circle T land and asked the town to waive zoning rules and filing fees and commit nearly $100 million in tax revenues to pay for road and water infrastructure. But differences of opinion lead to a battle among town aldermen, who deposed Mayor Scott Bradley and appointed Dale White in his place. By early May, the aldermen had disannexed the Circle T and other properties, and parcels of Westlake land had been claimed by the cities of Southlake, Fort Worth and Roanoke.

Eventually the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office filed a quo warrant to determine the rightful mayor (Bradley), and though it took years, various judges eventually struck down the disannexations. In 1998, Perot decided to develop Circle T under Westlake jurisdiction, cutting a $22 million deal with Fort Worth to settle the land dispute and secure a campus for Fidelity Investments.

Hillwood has not been the only business to make an impact on Westlake, however. IBM Corporation built the distinctive Solana office complex along Hwy. 114 in the mid-80s in partnership with Maguire Thomas Partnership, paving the way for future interest in the town from corporations. And though IBM only maintained a presence there for about a decade, Westlake is now home to companies like Wells Fargo, Deloitte, First American and more.

The town is also home to the only municipally owned charter school in the state; the award-winning Westlake Academy opened in 2003.