Culture Map Houston: Houston has more new home construction than any other city in the nation, and the building boom is going to get even more intense in the next few years, even though home prices are rising, a national housing consultant predicts. Developers are responding to the need for more lots by creating new communities, such as Pomona, which was recently started by Ross Perot Jr.’s Hillwood company in Manvel, south of Houston. See full story.

Dallas Morning News: The Frisco, Texas, City Council unanimously approved several agreements that will allow it to buy land from Frisco ISD and work with Hillwood Residential Services LP to build a 12-acre neighborhood park with practice fields for sporting events. By partnering with Hillwood, the city will save $200,000 to $300,000 on the park’s development, according to a staff memo. Read the full story.

WFAA-TV: Harvest is a new community in north Texas developed by Hillwood Communities and based on the LiveSmart design principles: sense of community; technology; healthy living; environmental stewardship; and education and enrichment. See the video.

The Wall Street Journal: H. Ross Perot Jr. and a few other big land investors are taking some chips off the table, betting that the swift increase in prices on residential land in recent years will abate in 2014. “We're sellers at the right price at the right time and the right circumstance,” says Fred Balda, president of Hillwood Communities. “We were fortunate to have that [scenario] the last couple of years. But we're not vacating our core business.” Read the full story.

Fort Worth Star-Telegram: Hillwood Communities has sold 27.4 acres in the Alliance Corridor in north Fort Worth, Texas, to Wal-Mart Stores. The land sales includes 12 acres for a Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market and 15.4 acres to a medical developer, according to Venture Commercial, the brokerage that handled the sale. Read the full story.

Denton Record-Chronicle Editorial: The Denton County (Texas) economy is starting the new year in full growth mode. Among the good news: Developer Hillwood Communities is building a $600 million residential community northwest of Frisco. The almost 800-acre Union Park project will have about 2,400 new houses, and construction is scheduled to start this spring. Read the full story.

Houston Chronicle: Hillwood Communities, in partnership with McGuyer Homebuilders Inc., announced its first master-planned community in the Houston area — a 1,000-acre development along Texas 288 in the city of Manvel. The $700 million development, called Pomona, is expected to have 2,100 single-family homes when it is completed. The company described its vision for the project as bridging “today’s modern lifestyle conveniences to a simpler, laid-back character found in the charming Gulf Coast communities of the South.” The site includes Mustang Bayou along which the developers will plant native grasses and trees. Read the full story.

Hillwood Communities, in partnership with McGuyer Homebuilders Inc. (MHI), announced today its first Houston-area master-planned community, Pomona, located in the heart of the rapidly growing Highway 288 corridor in Manvel, Texas. The 1,000-acre $700 million property will feature a relaxed, coastal community of approximately 2,100 single-family homes.

Hillwood’s vision for this project is to bridge today’s modern lifestyle conveniences to a simpler, laid-back character found in the charming Gulf Coast communities of the South.

“We’ve fully embraced the bayou and the City of Manvel has been terrific to work with on creating genuine coastal features in the architecture and throughout the community,” said Fred Balda, president of Hillwood Communities. “We are offering a dynamic master plan that focuses on amenities and recreation in a more relaxed atmosphere that’s not over programmed.”

The Mustang Bayou, a river that will serve as the heart of the community, defines Pomona and features amenities, schools and gathering spaces linked by an extensive trail system. More than 300 acres of the property will remain open space in the form of wetlands and protective waters. Improvements to the bayou include planting native grasses and trees.

“MHI is pleased to be partnering with Hillwood to bring a unique, Southern community to the growing Manvel area,” said Gary Tesch, CEO of MHI. “The vision of Pomona is to preserve the geography of the bayou and create a sustainable property for future generations to enjoy.”

The first phase of Pomona will break ground in spring 2014 with 300 homes offered by top Houston builders Highland Homes, David Weekley Homes, Coventry Homes, Plantation Homes and Trendmaker Homes. Strategically located in the Highway 288 growth corridor, Pomona’s residents will enjoy access to retail and major employment areas like The Pearland Town Center, The Houston Medical District, Houston Hobby Airport, Downtown Houston, The Galleria and Greenway Plaza.

Pomona will be built using Hillwood’s five LiveSmart design principles: Sense of Community, Technology, Healthy Living, Environmental Stewardship and Education & Enrichment.

Pomona is one of two new projects Hillwood announced in February. Union Park, a 787-acre master-planned community located along the U.S. Highway 380 corridor in North Dallas, will break ground in spring 2014.

About Hillwood Communities
Hillwood, a Perot company, is ranked as one of the top commercial real estate investors and developers in the country and one of the top residential developers in Dallas-Fort Worth. Since its inception in 1988, Hillwood Communities, the residential division for Hillwood, has built 70 communities throughout the United States and Costa Rica, and has developed more than 23,000 lots. Currently, the company oversees 35 active communities in 28 cities and seven states. Hillwood’s industrial developments currently house facilities for 58 companies listed on the Fortune 500, Global 500 or Forbes List of Top Private firms. Hillwood is best known for its Alliance brand that includes the 17,000-acre AllianceTexas, 4,474-acre AllianceFlorida at Cecil Commerce Center, and 2,000-acre AllianceCalifornia. For additional information, please visit hillwood.com and hillwoodcommunities.com.

Houston Business Journal: Houston — which already has some of the best-selling master-planned communities in the country— is getting another. Dallas-based Hillwood Communities this spring will break ground on its first Houston-area master-planned community, named Pomona. The 1,000-acre development will be near Highway 288 in Manvel, about 20 miles south of downtown Houston. Read the full story.

Hillwood Communities announced today its newest development, Union Park, a 787-acre master-planned community located along the U.S. Highway 380 corridor in Little Elm, Texas. The $600 million project boasts an abundance of parks and open space and is scheduled to break ground in spring 2014.

Approximately 2,400 single-family homes are planned for the community. The first phase of Union Park will feature 300 homes in a range of lot sizes. A wooded, 30-acre park featuring open greenbelts, ponds, trails, an amenity center and an amphitheater will serve as the central gathering spot at Union Park. The idea is to create a central hub where residents will come together to play, relax and enjoy community-wide activities and events.

“People really want open spaces more than anything else in a master-planned community,” said Fred Balda, president of Hillwood Communities. “We were very deliberate in building this community around more than twice the required green space to promote a small town feel and encourage socializing.”

“There is a large consumer demand in DFW that wants the high-end amenities like those at Union Park without a million dollar price point,” said Ted Wilson, Principal of Texas Housing Analyst Residential Strategies. “Union Park gives families a sense of community and will encourage outdoor activities that the whole family can enjoy.”

Union Park will be built using Hillwood’s five LiveSmart design principles: Sense of Community, Technology, Healthy Living, Environmental Stewardship and Education & Enrichment. Strategically located in the Highway 380 growth corridor, residents of Union Park will enjoy access to the nearby retail and major employment areas of Legacy, Frisco, Plano, Denton, University of North Texas and DFW International Airport, as well as recreational areas like Lake Lewisville and Lake Ray Roberts.

Union Park is one of two new projects Hillwood is announcing in February. Pomona, a 1,000-acre master-planned development located in the heart of the rapidly growing Highway 288 corridor in Manvel, Texas will break ground spring 2014.

Moving to Texas?