In an effort to spur development on 67.76 acres of undeveloped land that fronts SH 360 and Glade Road in Grapevine, Greystar GP II, LLC developers went before Grapevine City Council and Planning & Zoning Commission on Sept. 15 to request rezoning so they could construct a multifamily complex named The Preserve.

Grapevine City Council and P & Z voted against the residential development The Preserve. Grapevine City Council and P & Z voted against the residential development The Preserve.[/caption]

Both Council and P&Z unanimously denied the rezoning application. P&Z commissioners said one of the reasons for denial was because of the project's proximity to the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and the airport's opposition to the project.

Sandy Lancaster, assistant vice president for environmental affairs of DFW International Airport, spoke at the meeting in opposition.

"We receive funding from the federal government and one of the conditions to keep receiving that money is that they require us to protect the land around it and make sure that the land uses for that property are compatible with the airport," she said.

She said the residential property would not be a good fit as it is in proximity to three runways, aircraft engine maintenance activities and two airport training facilities—the Fire Training and Research Center and the airport's Department of Public Safety's firing and explosive range.

The Preserve would have been developed as a two-phase, gated, multifamily complex that contains a total of 714 units. The complex would have consisted of one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units. It would have also contained 21 brownstones, hiking trails, nature preserve areas, a dog park and a pool area.

The land is currently zoned planned commerce development district and light industrial district. Developers of the land said they have tried for years to get commerce and industrial businesses to develop on the property, but have had no success.

The Preserve, a proposed residential property,  would have contained 714 units. The Preserve, a proposed residential property, would have contained 714 units.[/caption]

"This is a problem tract," Grapevine Mayor William D. Tate said. "We haven't done a great job of creating energy; we didn't get any commercial or retail properties, and I thought personally [The Preserve] wasn't a bad idea."

Tate said city staff needs to work with the property owner, Grapevine Holdings, L.P., to see what can be done on the property and what would be a good fit on the property.

"We need to help develop and encourage development on that property," he said. "We need to re-examine the master plan for that corridor. Right now it looks like it will be a dead corridor."