Vision for east Fort Worth’s Woodhaven features investments in nature, streets and safety

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You are viewing: Vision for east Fort Worth’s Woodhaven features investments in nature, streets and safety

Plans are underway to transform east Fort Worth’s Woodhaven neighborhood.

The city of Fort Worth and planners hope to chart a long-term course for the area to strengthen its connection with nature and address infrastructure improvements while encouraging economic development that aids the neighborhood.

The Woodhaven Conservation Plan was approved by the Woodhaven Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone board of directors in January 2024. The TIF zone, implemented in 2008, will have about $13 million to help bring ideas to fruition with dedicated funding for neighborhood reinvestment.

At an Oct. 16 meeting, city staff and planners shared the results of a neighborhood survey of 145 residents that was conducted during a gathering in June.

“I just continue to be amazed at the amount of feedback we’ve been getting,” Robert Sturns, the city’s director of economic development, said. “I think some really creative things have come out of the workshops we’ve had already. And so, I’m feeling really excited about, one, what our future in Woodhaven is going to look like, and, two, how can you utilize the TIF money to make some of those things happen?”

Mindy Watts, principal and product manager of Philadelphia-based Interface Studio, said the company has been working with the neighborhood, the city’s economic development staff and the TIF board chaired by Mayor Pro Tem Gyna Bivens on the plan since early February. Watts was among the organizers of a June neighborhood festival where residents shared ideas for the area’s future. 

“We are at an exciting point in the project,” Watts said. “We’re ready to share some ideas for consideration, ideas about the future and the potential for change in the neighborhood, and also ideas about what are the assets we really want to preserve and conserve.”

The plan, Watts said, is intended to be a roadmap for the next 15 years in Woodhaven. The consultant team, led by Interface Studio, also includes The Collaborative Fort Worth and Ninigret Partners.

“It is intended to guide investment, preservation and growth in your neighborhood,” she said.

Planners hope to spur mixed-used development that aligns with the neighborhood and increases economic prosperity. Private projects are also underway in Woodhaven, including development around the area’s golf course, and those efforts are being coordinated as well, Watts said.

Woodhaven, near the intersection of Interstates 30 and 820, is home to 22 apartment complexes, but the neighborhood has yet to see desired business development, including the addition of retail shops and restaurants, despite population growth in the area, according to previous Fort Worth Report coverage. Bivens, who represents the area with 11,328 residents, said she wants to make commercial development a priority.

The conservation plan will tie in with the city’s Reimagine Fort Worth 2050 comprehensive plan as well as the Fort Worth Eastside Transportation Plan.

Planners developed draft recommendations that tie into health and well-being, the environment, economic opportunities and housing to improve the area, which has made headlines for violent crime, including the fatal shooting in May of ​​21-year-old Kyron Davon Sanders. 

The recommendations include expanding Woodhaven Park; adding new bike trails; possibly creating a nature-based community center with indoor gym space and meeting space; a central community gathering space; a new playground near the East Regional Library; safer, better connected streets; and strengthening community bonds with programming, activities and spaces to bring people together.

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Bike and hike trails would be made safer with tree pruning, increased lighting and possibly trail-related businesses such as a bike center.

A roundabout is proposed at Randol Mill Road and Woodhaven Boulevard to create a better gateway into the neighborhood with improved crosswalks, bike lane extensions and street changes to make Randol Mill more like a neighborhood street. A splash pad and nature preserve are among the ideas suggested by the community.

Boca Raton Boulevard, a wide neighborhood road that encourages speeding, could be altered to reduce traffic lane sizes and improve bike lanes with a buffer zone.

“We have ample room to add these elements to this key corridor,” Watts said. “Not tomorrow necessarily, but over the long term.”

Fort Worth real estate development firm Crescendo Development recently purchased more than 160 acres of land in Woodhaven, including the former golf course, which permanently closed in 2022. The purchase cost $8.5 million.

“Crime statistics, which have spiraled over the decades, clearly show that there is work to be done in Woodhaven to make it a safer place to live, work and play,” Will Northern, the head of Crescendo Development, told the Report in May. 

Residents said they would also like to see youth programs, child care options and early education programs since 72% of households with children under age 18 are single-parent households.

Economic opportunities and training are also needed since 50% of Woodhaven households earn less than $40,000 a year, while 20% earn less than $20,000 per year. The median age for residents is 28.3 years, since the majority of people living there are between 18 to 44 years old.

Woodhaven’s connection to nature is important to residents, Watts said.

The recommendations include preserving mature trees and planting new ones to increase shade in the community while maintaining natural views and protecting open spaces and water features. Development within the area’s floodplain will also be considered.

Woodhaven is known for its vast tree canopy, but it is not evenly distributed, Watts said. 

“There’s a real opportunity to fill in the gaps and bring more trees to Woodhaven,” she said.

Planners also suggest a parking lot shading ordinance or incentive program to provide a “green retrofit” to areas near I-30 that need more shading.

Programming to connect residents to water resources, such as a 2.7-acre pond near the golf course, are also suggested. An Oncor Electric Delivery easement could be turned into a nature asset with a multiuse trail alongside wildflower meadows to add beauty and habitats for pollinators. 

To increase economic opportunities, planners suggest denser, mixed-use redevelopment of underutilized commercial properties at the neighborhood’s edges since one of six storefronts is vacant. They also recommend incorporating small commercial or public spaces that can serve as gathering places as well as investments in job training, business development and infrastructure.

Neighborhood residents said they would like to see sit-down restaurants, walkable mixed-use hubs, a farmers market and housing communities for residents 55 and older.

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More households are key to development, Watts said. She added that there are opportunities for duplexes, townhomes and modern mixed-use developments. 

As the golf course is redeveloped, planners hope to use the site’s old driving range to create a neighborhood-style walkable development with a new road. Watts acknowledged the “big question” surrounding what will happen with the golf course. 

“This is our way of saying if a portion of the golf course is not going to be golf, here’s where we think there’s room to listen to what we’ve heard from the neighbors, which is that there’s desire for community space, there’s a desire for a social gathering place, there’s a desire for preserving access to nature and the natural features that are so beautiful here, and there’s a desire for this kind of walkable, commercial destination that is community scale and quite special in the region,” she said. 

When possible, planners said, there could be job training and economic opportunity through new developments in the community and connections to jobs elsewhere in the region. Watts suggested partnering with Eastside YMCA to pilot a workforce development program focused on landscaping, arborist training and natural land management to connect with local developments and initiatives.

The TIF funding could support investments in key transportation initiatives and infrastructure — including water/sewer upgrades, sewer connections, road and sidewalk construction and improved cell phone coverage.

Reinvesting in existing houses and residential developments to ensure safe, quality housing for all residents and encourage residents to remain in Woodhaven is also important, Watts said.

The plan also calls for making apartments safer through code enforcement, upgrades and redevelopment of problematic rental communities. The city, Watts said, could track repeat citations and seek opportunities to acquire problem properties to make necessary improvements. Grant or municipal funding could be used to add other improvements such as gate removal and repair, added lighting and safety cameras.

“Those will be woven into the recommendations as well,” she said.

Woodhaven planning will continue into 2025 as recommendations are refined.

“The hard work is only just beginning and so it takes time, it takes money, it takes advocacy and real effort to bring these things to fruition,” Watts said.

Eric E. Garcia is a senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at [email protected]. 

At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.

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