A new 600-acre development in Sherman in beginning to take shape. At full build out, the village center will have about 2,300 residential units and 680,000 square feet of commercial and civic space.
Representatives with the Munson Realty Company presented plans to the Village planned development along FM 1417, which will feature a mixture of residential, commercial and retail uses.
The Sherman Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval of the planned development, setting the stage for the project to move forward to City Council. This is the second planned development to come before the city since Sherman put in place its planned development ordinance this spring.
“The planned development offers a mix of commercial and residential opportunities complimented by almost 20 percent of the land area set aside as parks, open space or other village amenities,” the plan says in its opening introduction.
In recent months, the city has focused efforts on two mixed-use plan developments along its southern border on the FM 1417 corridor. The Terra Perpetua development will see a residential focus near Legacy Village and the Schulman’s Movie Bowl Grille site. Meanwhile, Village will focus more on commercial development near the site of the future Sherman High School.
Previously, city officials referred to Village under the name the Munson Development and said it would have a look and feel closer to the Sherman Town Center. Officials estimated that Village could see up to $400 million in development at full build out.
“We look forward to the opening of the new high school and the realization of commitments the Sherman Independent School District and the city of Sherman are making in this area of the city,” Munson Reality Company PresidentMerry Munson Wyatt said in a press release.
The development will be split up into four distinct development zones. The largest zone will be what developers are describing as the employment zone. The 184-acre space will be focused on a mixture of office, retail and research and development users. In total, the zone is expected to boast about 1.9 million square feet of office and retail space.
The next largest zone will be dedicated primarily to residential uses. The zone will feature about 326 single-family residential lots alingside nearly 515,000 square feet of commercial space when built out across 154 acres.
The village center zone will serve as the heart of the development and feature 126 acres of mixed-use developments. The space will be designed to be both pedestrian and bicycle friendly with a mixture of shops, residential and public use developments. Developers also said that the site will serve as a supporting center for the high school and its future facilities.
“The village center must have a relatively dense, urban character that emphasizes mixed-use development, residences within walking distance of shops, residential, employment and public uses and contain accessible public places,” the document says.
The smallest zone will feature 73 acres of green space separating the village center from the employment zone. The space will include woodlands, rolling hills and floodplan that will act as a portion of the development’s storm drainage system.
“We are excited about the various aspects of the plan, said John Ruggieri, director of urban design for design firm Hoefer Wysocki. “The Village addresses several long-term needs. It will provide a social anchor and community centric facilities in a walkable environment for the southwestern portion of the city.”
Credit: Michael Hutchins | Herald Democrat
https://www.heralddemocrat.com/news/20190918/600-acre-2300-unit-housing-development-moves-forward