The opening of two new Grand Parkway segments in the Cypress area is bringing developers to the far northwest, largely undeveloped parts of Harris County. Construction is starting to take off on a string of projects across a variety of development types, including residential, commercial, office, health care and education.

Segments F-1 and F-2 of the Grand Parkway opened to drivers in February, connecting Hwy. 290 through Cypress to I-45 North. Transportation officials are predicting the economic boost along the new segments will follow a similar pattern to the boost given to the Katy area after Segment E opened in December 2013.

“Over the next five to 10 years, I would expect that you’re going to see some changes, similar to what has been observed in Katy,” said David Gornet, executive director of the Grand Parkway Association. “You’re not necessarily going to start seeing strip malls springing up everywhere, but you can expect to see more retail and office development to cater to the incoming residential communities.”

The presidents of both the Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Tomball Area Chamber of Commerce said they expect the Grand Parkway to be a game changer, and the total economic value added to the region is hard to measure.

“The opportunity for better mobility will help businesses and community members, and that is exactly what the Grand Parkway was designed for,” said Leslie Martone, president of the Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce. “Developments [such as] Bridgeland, Towne Lake and Cypress Creek Lakes bring more people to our growing community, and the opportunity for better mobility is what is needed.”

Residential development

Single-family residential developers were among the first to begin laying claim to the Grand Parkway area and pushing projects forward in Cypress. Data from the demographic research firm Population and Survey Analysts suggests the majority of housing growth within Cy-Fair ISD over the next five to 10 years will take place west of Fry Road and near the Grand Parkway.

Communities set to see the most growth include Bridgeland, Westfield Village and Elyson, all of which will see construction along the Grand Parkway and will combine for approximately 8,680 new housing occupancies by 2024, according to PASA data.

The grand opening for the first phase of Elyson is set to take place this fall. Located near the Grand Parkway and FM 529, Phase 1 calls for 800 homes with a mix of traditional and patio-style properties as well as an activity center with a cafe, swimming pool, fitness center and indoor meeting space.

Interest from homebuyers has been strong, said Heather Gustafson, marketing director with Newland Communities, the site’s developer.

“We put up signs along the Grand Parkway at the beginning of February and the interest has just exploded,” she said.

Howard Hughes Corporation, the developer behind Bridgeland, has big plans for expanded the community westward toward the Grand Parkway, where future development will take place. Plans revolve around the extension of Bridgeland Creek Parkway from Fry Road to the Grand Parkway and the development of a Bridgeland Town Center at the new intersection.

Bridgeland Creek Parkway is scheduled to be finished in late 2016. The extension is intended to provide another east-west thoroughfare to access the Grand Parkway and the future Town Center, officials said.

Phase 1 of another large master-planned community is under construction along Segment F-1 of the Grand Parkway. Dellrose, a 600-acre development, is being built between just beyond Hwy. 290.

Phase 1 will feature 275 homes, the first of which will be completed this summer. The 1,500-home community will be built out over the next seven to 10 years, and the Grand Parkway will play a major role in attracting potential buyers, developer Steve Sample said.

“[The Grand Parkway] makes areas accessible that were previously unaccessible to developers,” Sample said. “The new roads open things up.”

Economy and job boost

Projects launched by major companies FedEx Corporation and Daikin Industries along the Grand Parkway are strengthening the job outlook and future prospects of the area as well, according to officials with the Greater Houston Partnership.

“The Grand Parkway helps people and goods move more efficiently,” said Bob Pertierra, GHP's chief economic development officer. “This significant investment in Houston’s infrastructure will transform how Cy-Fair and our region does business for years to come as projects like Goodman Manufacturing, FedEx and ExxonMobil demonstrate.”

Daikin’s $417 million Comfortplex will open later this year near the Hwy. 290 and Grand Parkway intersection, bringing an estimated 4,600 jobs to the area. FedEx started construction this year near The Grand Parkway and FM 529 on what will be the largest ground distribution hub in the state, bringing another 400 jobs.

Officials with Daikin have described the Grand Parkway as a major reason the company relocated to the area, noting the mobility benefits outweighed benefits other locations offered in terms of tax incentives.

The Daikin announcement also seems to have sparked interest from other developers. American International Industries, which owns a large tract of land near the Daikin facility, has reported that it has had preliminary discussions about building a master-planned community on 520 acres.

Gornet said the Grand Parkway immediately benefits people that already do business in Cy-Fair by helping to alleviate congestion on other major thoroughfares, such as Fry Road.

“Traffic counts are exceeding opening day estimates as more drivers move away from the cross-streets, which is exactly what was intended,” Gornet said. “We are already seeing this improve long-term and short-term commutes in the area. It leaves the local roads to the local traffic.”

Martone said she expects a nice mix of development to start to fill in along the Grand Parkway over time. She also said the transportation benefits could spill over to other Cypress streets.

“I think the developments will be filled, and the area businesses will fill in nicely,” she said. “My hope is [that] the streets that parallel Hwy. 290 continue to grow out toward Fry [Road] and ultimately the Grand Parkway to take some congestion off Hwy. 290.”

Demand for services

With residential and office development moving forward at a quick pace, retail, education, public safety and health care are not far behind.

Places of worship are even looking to the Grand Parkway for new locations. Houston’s First Baptist Church celebrated with a ground breaking April 10 on its Bridgeland-area campus, and Second Baptist Church is constructing a new facility near the Hwy. 290 intersection.

The Grand Parkway-related population growth projected for west Cy-Fair was a major factor in CFISD deciding to build two education villages in the area, said Roy Sprague, the district’s associate superintendent of facilities, construction and support services. Cypress Park High School will open for classes this fall along the Grand Parkway near FM 529, and the district’s unnamed 12th high school will open in fall 2017 farther north in the Bridgeland area.

Harris County is also staking its claim along the Grand Parkway, announcing plans to build a new annex building, constable’s office and justice of the peace office on 130 acres of land near The Grand Parkway and Hwy. 249.

Retail projects typically come after the residential construction, Gornet said, but several major centers have already been announced. The Grand Parkway Town Center is under construction near the Hwy. 249 interchange. Meanwhile, tenants have been signing on to the future Fairfield Town Center near Hwy. 290, where construction has been picking up over the last few months.

“A lot of bigger names in retail are looking for a certain number of rooftops before they open,” Gornet said. “There’s also a lot more work from a developer standpoint that needs to get done to move a retail project forward.”

Memorial Hermann Hospital Systems, which has been planning a Cypress-area hospital for years, also decided to capitalize on population growth projections by building near the Hwy. 290 and Grand Parkway interchange.

The system opened its convenient care center in February at the same campus and will open the hospital itself next spring, said Scott Barbe, CEO of the new hospital. The hospital will cater to three of the fastest-growing ZIP codes in the Greater Houston area—77433, 77377 and 77429. The completion of the Grand Parkway is expected to drive even more growth, Barbe said.

“The evidence was overwhelming that we needed to have a presence out in Cypress,” he said. “Between the current demand and the growth that the Grand Parkway will provide, there is no doubt that this needed to be the next place for us to bring our services.”