‘Pocket neighborhood’ to bring 241 homes near Brazos Park East

Aug 16, 2023

The Waco Plan Commission approved a special zoning plan for a proposed 241-unit "pocket neighborhood" nestled into 40.5 acres at Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Herring Avenue on Tuesday.

The Waco Plan Commission Tuesday will consider a special zoning plan for a proposed 241-unit "pocket neighborhood" nestled into 40.5 acres at Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Herring Avenue.

The development at 2001 N. MLK Jr. Blvd., across from Brazos Park East and about 2 miles from downtown Waco, would offer a mixture of housing types and would be East Waco's largest new subdivision in decades.

The commission will consider recommending rezoning the site as a planned unit development, a tailored zoning category allowing more flexibility than traditional zoning. The commission will meet at 7 p.m. at the Waco Convention Center's Bosque Theater.

Developer Northpaw Partners LLC is under contract to purchase the tract from owner Pacific Operating Company, said Taylor Allen of Rydell Real Estate, the Waco firm representing Northpaw.

Allen said the project will be completed under local ownership. He described Northpaw Partners as a special purpose entity financially backed by investors who have worked with Rydell Real Estate on numerous projects over the last decade.

A 40.5-acre tract at Herring Avenue and MLK Jr. Boulevard is up for a zoning change.

The community would include a central park, community pool and plenty of open green space, with walking trails around the edge of the subdivision that connect to the river trail system leading to nearby Cameron Park and Brazos Park East.

Plans for the development show green space dispersed among tightly packed lots along wide, tree-lined streets. Garage access would be hidden along alleyways behind the houses.

"Personally, as someone that lives just a few blocks from this location, … being able to walk to Cameron Park is invaluable to be able to enjoy recreational activities … just within walking distance from your house," Allen said. "It really is an incredible feature."

Waco Planning Director Clint Peters said both the streets and alleys would be maintained by the city upon completion. However, the private amenities would be the homeowners association's responsibility.

Peters said the city staff recommends that trails along Herring Avenue and Dallas Street on the edge of the subdivision be left open for public use and maintained by HOA.

A map shows the layout of the proposed pocket neighborhood and trails surrounding it.

Central amenities would likely be reserved for subdivision residents only, Allen said.

The development plan was created by McCann Adams, the Austin urban design firm that was also involved in Austin's Mueller airport redevelopment and Waco's Floyd Casey redevelopment.

The new pocket neighborhood features a mix of housing types and sizes, including 86 townhouses.

The plan calls for 129 "rear-loaded" homes, which have no front driveways, as well as 26 "front-loaded" homes with front access.

The houses would vary in size from 1,500 square feet to about 5,000 square feet. The proposed arrangement would put larger lots along the development's eastern edge, consistent with the adjacent Hollywood neighborhood, and it would prioritize higher-density townhouses on the western edge near MLK Jr. Boulevard.

Allen said the plan is to increase housing density in line with the city's plan for downtown development and recommendations from the city of Waco housing study performed by M&L Associates in 2022. Increasing density also contributes to reduction of the need for cars in the neighborhood, and orienting each house toward the street with a porch or stoop engages community closeness.

Though pricing details for each type of residence are still being worked out, he said the intent is to provide a middle-market neighborhood.

"We’re not building mansions, and we’re not building extremely small, cheap housing," Allen said. "Our hope is that there will be houses for people that make average median income in Waco to be able to live there."

Peters said Waco's housing plan identified shortages of all types of housing, so having a development that could offer a couple of different options in one places is a good thing. Additionally, he said the city is offering the condition of approval that 10% of houses, about 24 units, must be affordable.

Having different housing styles, offering different price points, creating usable green space and focusing on community, Peters said the development checks many of the boxes for features of an ideal Waco neighborhood.

Houses within the subdivision would have design standards for potential builders, but the goal is to promote diversity among houses, Allen said. He said keeping garages at the back of houses not only helps increase density, but also allows for architectural differences between facades.

"Right now our hope is that those design standards include porches, a nicer quality façade and windows and window treatments," he said. "Additionally, we would like for there to be an 18-inch elevation for the house from the street, which can really enhance curb appeal for a neighborhood."

Peters said there has been some concern about the new development's impact on nearby neighborhoods, such as the Carver Neighborhood Association and Hollywood subdivision that borders the plot to the east. The city will require the developer to submit a traffic study measuring the possible impact of the neighborhood's five accesses along MLK Jr. Boulevard, Dallas Street and Herring Avenue, Peters said.

Allen said Northpaw has had good conversations with the neighborhood association's leadership and attended meetings, attempting to hear their concerns and ensure the development doesn't impose an undue burden on people living there. He said both sides talked productively about preserving the legacy of the Hollywood neighborhood, and the developer is happy to work with residents to provide something good for Waco.

"We’re thrilled at the opportunity here," he said. "Our goal truly is to create a win for the city of Waco, provide good quality housing stock for people that currently live in Waco that want to be close to all the things happening in our city ... that want to take advantage of the wonderful amenity that is Cameron Park."

The first phase of the project, pending approval by the commission and Waco City Council, is expected to begin late this year, creating 133 of 241 homesites to be sold to builders by mid-2024. Allen said it could take 18 to 24 months to build out the subdivision's infrastructure.

The 241-unit development would include 86 townhouses, 129 homes without front driveways and 26 with front driveways.

In line with the city's 2022 housing study, the lot layouts are designed to orient each house toward the street with a porch or stoop with helps to engage community closeness, according to a representative of a local real estate development firm assisting with the project.

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Kourtney David is a Baylor University graduate from Springfield, Missouri. She joined the Tribune-Herald staff in July 2022.

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