Arlington ISD and the municipal government are taking final steps to complete the sale of 24 acres in the southwestern area of the city by the end of July, a school district official said.
The purchase will cost the city around $1.6 million and represents the first sale of Arlington ISD-owned land the school district intends to offload. The purchase will come from Arlington’s stormwater utility fee fund, a city spokesperson said.
In April, Arlington City Manager Trey Yelverton told the Arlington Report that the city wanted to purchase the land to prevent developers from building on it due to watershed issues.
A FEMA flood hazard map shows the flood risk near 2424 Hedgeapple Drive. (Courtesy image| City of Arlington)
The city of Arlington’s stormwater team determined the land may be a suitable site for a detention pond to hold water during intense rain, a city spokesperson said. Another possibility? The city keeps the land as a “green space for flood mitigation.”
The area was evaluated as part of a larger study into the area near Rush Creek. Sublett Creek feeds into Rush Creek.
Since at least 2008, the city of Arlington’s stormwater management department has evaluated the effects of flooding from the creek on nearby homes.
In 2010, Tropical Storm Hermine delivered heavy rain that resulted in flooding from Rush Creek. Around 100 apartment units and 25 homes in the area were affected, The Dallas Morning News reported at the time.
Less than a year later, in May 2011, Arlington City Council agreed to purchase The Willows at Shady Valley condominium complex and 16 other plots for demolition.
Now, 15 years after the flooding, the department is still looking for ways to prevent flooding from the creek.
Nick Fang, a University of Texas at Arlington civil engineering professor who has worked on flooding and watershed issues, said the purchase of the land is a good move.
“Rush Creek is very, very unique,” Fang said. “You have some highly vegetated areas and an area that has a lot going on. Having a detention pond in these flood zones could definitely help.”
The initial price that Arlington ISD listed the plot for was $1,695,000, according to a listing on LoopNet. The final price the two parties agreed on is $1,625,000, said Kelly Horn, the district’s assistant superintendent of facility services.
Both the city council and school board agreed on the final price and sale.
The closing date set in the bid to buy the property is on or before July 31, 2025, Horn said. Arlington ISD did not respond to the Report’s request about whether the sale had been finalized ahead of publication.
Chris Moss is a reporting fellow for the Arlington Report. Contact him at chris.moss@fortworthreport.org.
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