Brinkmann Ranch Partial Sale Could Be First Of Many
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FRISCO (CBS 11 NEWS) - With housing in high demand in North Texas, a recent sale of one of the last holdouts of prime real estate could have a big impact on a lot of future home buyers.
It once served as a backdrop for JR Ewing, but now Brinkmann Ranch is making big changes in what some are predicting will be a new era in North Texas real estate.
Even with new homes going up in Frisco as fast as developers can build them, many say it's still not enough to meet the demand. That's why some longtime Frisco residents have been waiting patiently for the thousands of acres that make up the Brinkmann Ranch to make way for new subdivisions.
"I've been having an eye on that property for 16 years," Frisco homeowner Deryck Lewis said.
Lewis was among the Frisco residents happy to hear reports that after years of plans to develop one of Frisco's last remaining large undeveloped plots of land, owner Baxter Brinkmann finally sold about 200 acres to be turned into a gated community.
"It looks odd being there, so we're glad that more houses are being built there," Lewis said.
Realtors like Brad Holden say this first sale will likely prompt the few other remaining owners of large undeveloped tracts to follow Brinkmann's lead.
"I don't see any reason for them to hold out any longer because that one sale right there is going to domino," Holden said.
That's because Brinkmann reportedly got top dollar for land that is in short supply as corporations relocate to the region and bring with them thousands of potential home buyers.
"The fact that he sells it for around $37 million for 200 acres, it's going to open up the other couple people's... landowners' eyes," Holden said.
But is Frisco ready? Harsha Katra wants to be sure his three-year-old son's future classrooms don't get too crowded with all this growth. A spokesperson for Frisco ISD says they are already working with Brinkmann regarding site selection for a school given the planned development and any future development plans. A side-by-side comparison of the city's comprehensive plans shows the 2006 expectation that the land would be mostly suburban has now given way for a more urban development of the entire ranch over several years.
"They need to build remaining infrastructure also, like new schools, parks, and everything also accordingly, so that way it will be balanced," Katra said.
That sale earlier this year of about 200 acres represents less than 10 percent of the entire property, and many real estate analysts anticipate future announcements of more sales of sections could come soon.
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