The Dallas Morning News
By Susan McFarland
5:51 AM on Aug 25, 2023

Rainwater Crossing, a 641-acre planned community in Celina, will now have more open space and dedicated park land, wider sidewalks, more amenity centers and updated zoning after City Council approved an updated development agreement during a special meeting Aug. 21.

The development with its new agreement, which replaces the one approved in 2016, will still be located west and east of future Custer Road and north of County Road 130.

Changes include fewer multi-family units, from 1,483 to 1,300, plus the addition of 300 tiny homes for rent. Single family zoning will be on 2,200 lots and include townhomes and homes with a range of lot sizes from 40 feet to 70 feet or larger.

“There’s schools and parks. It’s an integrated neighborhood with a mix of lot sizes and several amenity centers,” said Dustin McAfee, the city’s executive director of development services.

Residents voiced concerns about the tiny homes, buffers between their homes and the proposed development, light pollution, traffic, future water usage, and roadway conditions that could worsen before new roads are built to accommodate the neighborhoods.

One couple, Jay and Lynn Bender, spoke about city officials regarding lack of notification about roadways for this project going through their property, which is located in the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ).

“I did not know that my property had already been decided for me before I even got there,” Jay Bender said. “There is a master plan for the major thoroughfares, and they go right through my master bedroom.”

Council Member Jay Pierce also voiced concerns about roadways, especially putting more traffic on County Road 97, which already needs improvements.

“Everyone has to understand that even if we approve this tonight I personally think it’s a better plan than what it was before,” Pierce said.

To help with that issue, developer Philip Thompson, president of HFI Celina Realty, agreed to complete G.A. Moore Parkway construction in the first phase of development.

Thompson had asked to move the agenda item from Aug. 8 so he would have time to meet with residents who had concerns about the project.

“We’re not getting rid of the green space that you see on the map surrounding the pond. We want to amenitize it,” he said. “We want to make nice trails. It’s definitely a feature and something great to have so those worried about trees going away and us bulldozing, that’s not happening.”