West Houston Association
Names 2014 Quality Planned Developments
Houston, TX (March 28, 2014) — The West Houston Association has named six residential and commercial projects “Quality Planned Developments” in recognition of their successful efforts to build innovative neighborhoods and working spaces that set the standard for future area development.
“These Quality Planned Developments exemplify the type of outstanding development we want to see continue in West Houston,” said Perri D’Armond, president and CEO of the 33-year-old organization. “This area is expected to have 2.8 million residents and an employment base of 1 million by 2050. We want the development supporting that growth to be superior, sustainable projects.”
The West Houston Association honored the designees during a cocktail reception March 27th at the Houston Marriott Westchase. Selected as Quality Planned Developments are:
Aliana® is a 2,000-acre (MPC) community by Aliana Development Company, located in Fort Bend County. Aliana is ranked 5th in Houston for net sales and ranked 15th as one of the top 20 master-planned communities in the country for 2013. Aliana since 2012 has won over 34 awards from prestigious developer and builder organizations such as NAHB, GHBA, TAB and AMA. In 2012, the Texas Association of Builders awarded Aliana as “Developer of the Year” and most recently Aliana was honored by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) with the Nation’s overall winner’s award of “ The Gold Award” and a “The Silver Award” for “Community of the Year: Masterplanned.” Aliana residents enjoy numerous and impressive amenities, such as a 24 hour exercise facilities, tennis, and a swim center along with quick access to downtown Houston.
Mason Creek Corporate, a 110-acre master-planned, deed restricted business park developed by Parkside Capital. Mason Creek Corporate is ideally located at the corner of Mason Road and I-10 near the Energy Corridor, Cinco Ranch, and the Grand Parkway and is designed to accommodate office, industrial, flex, back-office, restaurants, hotel, retail, and corporate headquarters sites.
West Ten Business Park, a 473-acre development at Interstate 10 and Highway 90 in Katy, is developed by Parkside Capital. Access to a major transportation corridor, community amenities, and a high-quality employee base make West Ten Business Park a desirable choice for bulk distribution, flex, back office, office, retail and corporate headquarters sites.
Towne Lake, a 2,400 acre Caldwell Community “Connected by Water”, is centered around Houston’s largest private lake. Residents enjoy recreational boating, skiing, and boat docks amid Hill Country inspired homes along a 300 acre recreational lake. Towne Lake offers exceptional amenities, including parks, trails, waterparks and exciting future developments like The Boardwalk, The Lakehouse & Marina, amphitheater, and a Kroger grocery store. In 2012, the Greater Houston Builders Association named Towne Lake the Master Planned Community of the Year.
Ten Oaks, an 83-acre development at the corner of Interstate 10 and Barker Cypress Road, is developed by Wolff Companies. The project has 1,900 feet of frontage on I-10 and sits adjacent to the Texas Medical Center – West Campus, which currently employs over 3,000 people and is still expanding. Major employers are attracted by convenient access to the well-educated workforce found surrounding The Energy Corridor and the variety and quality of housing opportunities in the area.
Westway Park is a 150-acre office park developed by Wolff Companies, located at the intersection of the Sam Houston Tollway and Clay Road, between Interstate 10 and U.S. 290. The Sam Houston Tollway, or “Techway,” is one of the fastest developing technology corridors in the country. Westway Park is home to a number of Houston’s leading corporate facilities including Cameron, GE Oil & Gas, Travelers, Seismic Exchange and Superior Energy Services. A number of other corporate facilities are located in the park and immediate area.
“We have strived to differentiate our projects from others by establishing higher standards for planning, architecture, landscaping and signage,” notes David W. Hightower, Executive Vice President of Wolff Companies. “We have proven over time that such standards result in a more attractive built environment and higher values.”
“Wolff Companies greatly appreciates the Association’s recognition of its efforts. We hope these designations will demonstrate to others involved in the building of our community that developing higher quality projects not only benefit their customers, clients and surrounding community, but also their own bottom lines,” said David W. Hightower, Executive Vice President of Wolff Companies.
The Quality Planned Development designation was developed in 2013 to stem hastily conceived residential and retail development that can occur with the explosive population growth expected in West Houston. The first set of Quality Planned Development designations were awarded in 2013 and they included Bridgeland, Cinco Ranch, CITYCENTRE, Cross Creek Ranch, Cypress Creek Lakes, The Vintage, and Wyndehaven Lake Estates.
To earn the Quality Planned Development designation, projects must meet a stringent set of standards devised by the West Houston Association. Requirements include mandates on park space, sidewalks, landscaping and signage control.
“We hope the standards encourage sustainable development in West Houston that will provide more jobs, better shopping and enticing destinations,” D’Armond said.
“The West Houston Association is an organization that is continually promoting higher standards of development and this program is a market driven attempt to raise the bar for everyone living in West Houston,” said West Houston Association Chairman Peter Houghton with Howard Hughes Corp – Bridgeland.
For more information on the association and to see a full list of the designation requirements, visit www.westhouston.org.
Quality Planned Development |
Managing Growth in West Houston
By Peter Houghton, Chairman of the Board, West Houston Association
Opinion Editorial Appearing in the Houston Chronicle February 17, 2013
The West Houston Association this week will award its first Quality Planned Development designations to five planned residential communities and two commercial projects in west Houston.
Receiving the residential awards are Bridgeland, Cinco Ranch, Cross Creek Ranch, Cypress Creek Lakes and Wyndehaven Lake Estates, with CityCentre and The Vintage receiving the commercial awards.
The awards are not simply pats on the back for some of the most highly regarded developments in the Houston area, but rather an attempt to guide the quality of growth in what is Houston’s next great boomtown. The West Houston Association expects to see its population double by 2050 from 1.4 million in 2010 to 2.8 million, with an employment base growing from 500,000 in 2010 to more than one million in 2050. That’s a lot of growth in a few years, and that’s not always a good thing.
Such a significant influx of people can invite pop-up retail, hastily conceived residential and generally ill-planned development that can – not always, but sometimes – result in suburban decay. Through the Quality Planned Development designation, the Association is working proactively to mitigate this possibility by shining a light on the types of responsible development that will not only help establish west Houston as a coveted area, but is actually a pathway to success in the free market.
Association members spent countless hours developing a comprehensive list of standards, including requirements for parks, sidewalks, landscape signage control, architectural guidelines and many other design elements that improve the quality, livability and sustainability of development in west Houston.
The standards have been embraced by our award winners, who are testaments to our free market system. Cinco Ranch is one of the 10 top-selling residential communities in the nation. Bridgeland and Cross Creek Ranch are among the top 20. Even smaller developments, such as Wyndehaven Lake Estates with just 79 homes, have seen the public respond to quality planning, selling out much earlier than projected. Residential developments of all sizes and smaller commercial centers, if done right, can become sustainable assets instead of blighted areas that reduce surrounding property values.
The association encourages the development of mixed-use lifestyle centers and office development in west Houston to provide more jobs, better shopping and enticing destinations for area residents. We know the west Houston area is a desirable place to live and work based on the success of the developments that now thrive in the area.
Our goal is to establish the Quality Planned Development designation as a recognizable brand and seal of approval that will attract compliance on a voluntary basis from the free market to meet the demand that is certain to come in west Houston. The design and implementation of their basic and expanded facilities add quality and aesthetic elements which translate into enhanced near term and long term value for the buyers and the surrounding community.
The Quality Planned Development (QPD) program is an instrument by which the West Houston Association can spotlight higher standards in action. Developments will be asked to apply for the QPD designation and once approved, will receive license to utilize the QPD logo in promotion of their products.
The QPD application and check list may be found here.
If you have any questions or would like to comment please send us an email.
Call us at 713.461.9378 or email QPD@westhouston.org