Plano City Council unanimously approved the rezoning of about 8 acres of land at the southwest corner of 18^th Street and G Avenue to allow the addition of 61 single-family homes in its Aug. 25 meeting.

In 2005, a different developer began development on the same site with the intention to build townhomes but after completing construction on 14 of them, the project fell through, said Phyllis Jarrell, manager of special projects in Plano.

Now the project to add more housing to downtown Plano is resuming but with a new developer, InTown Homes, and the new single-family home concept.

"We think this product is going to be better for the area," said Dana Green, sales manager with InTown Homes.

With the council's rezoning approval, Jarrell said the developer will begin the steps necessary before construction as soon as possible including re-platting and utility changes to accommodate the houses.

Ten of the homes reside in the historical district of Plano, and Green said the developer has worked closely with the city, the Planning and Zoning Commission and the Heritage Commission to ensure the new homes fit well.

The developments are another component to the city's movement to revitalize downtown, and Jarrell said the efforts have even affected the older communities in the city.

"That's always been one of our goals, to add housing in the area," she said. "It helps DART ridership, it supports all the businesses [in downtown] and it has helped to revitalize our adjacent historic neighborhoods. In general, the downtown revitalization has also helped to improve surrounding neighborhoods and really attracted new residents to them as well."