Documenters<\/a> empowers people like you to help fill the gaps in reporting on Tarrant County public meetings. Find out how you can join here<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cYou are removing the quiet. You are removing the peace,\u201d Erika Graham, one of the most vocal opponents, said in an interview after developer Will Northern held a contentious town hall Sept. 11 at Woodhaven\u2019s Potter\u2019s House venue<\/a> to unveil changes to his plan and hear comments.<\/p>\n The Fort Worth Zoning Commission in February approved a range of agricultural, single-family, multifamily, retail and other uses for the 160-acre redevelopment. The preliminary plat maps out the locations for the proposed uses, including streets.<\/p>\n But many of the comments at the town hall came from residents who remain concerned about apartments and want to effectively relitigate the land uses approved by the zoning commission. One resident asked Northern whether he\u2019d be willing to remove apartments from his plan. Residents were also wary of homes, streets and other things being built in their \u201cbackyards\u201d \u2014 currently the golf course\u2019s old tee boxes, fairways and putting greens, now owned by Northern\u2019s Fort Worth-based Crescendo<\/a>.<\/p>\n Northern, ahead of the Sept. 17 meeting, removed the proposed conversion of the Doral Drive cul-de-sac to a planned extension of Country Club Lane through the property. Country Club Lane now terminates at the southwest end of the property, and Northern\u2019s proposed plat would extend the street to Randol Mill Road, which runs along the northern boundary of the golf course.<\/p>\n Some residents who spoke at the August meeting and the town hall also don\u2019t like the planned Country Club Lane extension, but Northern left that in his plan. The city would require emergency access through the site in any redevelopment, and the individual parcels require access, Northern said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe city likes to see more connectivity from a safety standpoint,\u201d Northern told the estimated 50 people who showed up at the town hall.<\/p>\n At the City Plan Commission hearing, Northern is seeking two waivers from city requirements and approval of the preliminary plat.<\/p>\n The case converges on city zoning requirements and a Texas statute designed to protect people who own property on golf courses that are to be redeveloped. The statute says a city can\u2019t approve a new plat that is shown to \u201chave a materially adverse effect on existing single-family property values.\u201d<\/p>\n In one waiver, Northern is asking to exceed the permissible length<\/a> on four \u201cblock faces\u201d \u2014 the distance on a street between two intersections or other boundaries. The proposed development also has a lower-than-permissible street \u201cconnectivity index\u201d score under the city\u2019s requirements, and Northern is seeking a waiver from that requirement.<\/p>\n The city staff is recommending the plan commission approve both waivers and the preliminary plat, assuming the commission finds no projected adverse impact on property values, according to the meeting agenda.<\/p>\n Northern said he submitted a report to the plan commission detailing increases in surrounding property values that occurred after the redevelopment of two Texas golf courses. Before the August hearing, he submitted other studies, including ones on drainage and projected traffic impact.<\/p>\n Crescendo\u2019s preliminary plat includes 12 mixed-use lots, six multifamily lots,10 single-family detached residential lots and one private open space lot, according to the meeting agenda. The single-family lots would be a half-acre or more \u2014 \u201cestate lots\u201d that Northern envisions will be attractive to luxury builders.<\/p>\n Northern\u2019s role in the redevelopment has been a source of confusion and skepticism to some residents.<\/p>\n Northern has defined himself as a \u201chorizontal developer,\u201d meaning he\u2019s preparing the site, securing the zoning and preliminary plat, and planning to sell parcels to other \u201cvertical developers\u201d who would then build under the uses \u2014 and other requirements \u2014 approved by the zoning commission and in the locations set down in the plat.<\/p>\n \u201cThat vertical developer is going to have to go through another platting stage based on the site plan they come up with,\u201d Northern told the residents.<\/p>\n When asked by residents how many apartments they might expect to be built, Northern said he couldn\u2019t project that number, because multifamily developers he sells to would have certain latitude under the approved zoning.<\/p>\n But \u201cwhat is probable here is a cottage community\u201d with uses such as duplexes, he said.<\/p>\n Northern said the varying shapes, access requirements and hilly topography of the golf course would limit the scope of multifamily development. He also noted that the approved urban residential multifamily zoning in his plan includes a maximum two-story height restriction.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re not going to have this structure towering over you,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Residents said they were concerned that the multifamily residences in Crescendo\u2019s plan might soon go the way of the aging apartment complexes around Woodhaven, the residents of which often wander through the neighborhood.<\/p>\n Northern responded that the multifamily developers who build on the golf course would be following today\u2019s construction codes and at a significantly higher level of quality.<\/p>\n That will in turn buoy the nearby apartment complexes, whose rents are so low today they\u2019re not profitable, he said. One apartment property recently changed hands and now is held by a well-regarded owner, Northern said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s already happening,\u201d he said of the projected improvement in the market.<\/p>\n Crescendo\u2019s new investment, the first major investment in Woodhaven in decades, would boost property values in the neighborhood, he said.<\/p>\n Northern held meetings with residents as part of the zoning and plat cases, but the most vocal skeptics accused Northern of a lack of \u201ccollaboration.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis deal has stunk from the beginning, and it still stinks,\u201d Graham, whose yard abuts the path of the proposed extended Country Club Lane, said in the interview. She acknowledged the numerous meetings with Northern but said, \u201cWe were told what was going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n Best case, she said, she\u2019d like the golf course to be acquired by the city as a park. Northern wants to market one section of the property to the city as parkland that would connect to the existing, small Woodhaven Park<\/a>, but he said he needs the preliminary plat approved first.<\/p>\n Jarod Newland, whose home is on Doral Drive near the end of the cul-de-sac that Northern originally planned to extend, said he was grateful for the change. He asked Northern whether it was possible to put in buffers, such as landscaping, that would help screen Doral from the end of another cul-de-sac Northern now plans off of the extended Country Club Lane.<\/p>\n Newland, who has lived in Woodhaven for 10 years, said in an interview he thinks Northern\u2019s plan can only help the neighborhood and bring in badly needed resources such as retail and restaurants.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re already at rock bottom,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Northern said he would like to salvage the dilapidated country club building and possibly some of the golf course and market it to a concern interested in running it as a venue and event center. Golf, however, is a difficult money maker, as shown by the demise of the club and course, he said.<\/p>\n Northern said in an interview, as he told residents, that he\u2019s shifting gears from his original plan to sell to vertical developers who build their own infrastructure, including streets, curbs, water and sewer, trees in the public right of way and streetlights. Developers, however, have indicated to him that they\u2019d rather Crescendo build that infrastructure, Northern said.<\/p>\n Crescendo would then seek reimbursement for some or all of those infrastructure costs with Fort Worth\u2019s Woodhaven tax increment finance district<\/a>, Northern said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe may ask for 100% reimbursement, but they may only give us 50% or 75%,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s not guaranteed.\u201d<\/p>\n The taxing district currently has an available $17 million that can be used for public improvements in the zone. One other planned project that abuts Crescendo\u2019s will likely be in the running for the tax money, but Northern said the district can fully support both projects\u2019 projected needs.<\/p>\n Northern expressed optimism that the toolbox of local and federal incentives will help draw new investors into the neighborhood once Crescendo is finished preparing the site and getting it through the city.<\/p>\n Those incentives include the taxing district; a Fort Worth Neighborhood Empowerment Zone<\/a> in Woodhaven that allows fee waivers to developers; and a federal Opportunity Zone<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are bringing outside developers into Woodhaven,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Doug Wilhelm is a member of the Fort Worth Report\u2019s Documenters crew. \n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n Fort Worth Report is certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative<\/a> for adhering to standards for ethical journalism.<\/p>\n Republish This Story<\/p>\n![\"Documenters\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/1757847084_718_cropped-Documenters_logo_v1.png\"){kind=logo}
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/WoodhavenCountryClub-Pond-1.jpg\")
Crescendo Development wants to retain Woodhaven Country Club\u2019s three ponds as part of the firm\u2019s redevelopment plan. (Scott Nishimura | Fort Worth Report) Credit: Scott Nishimura<\/p>\n
Scott Nishimura is a senior editor for the Documenters program at the Fort Worth Report. Reach him at scott.nishimura@fortworthreport.org. 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<\/a>.<\/p>\n
![\"Creative](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1750614464_36_cc-by-nd-4.0.png\"\/)
<\/a><\/p>\n