There are two park areas near the entrance and exit for the future Tenison Hills neighbors to enjoy, one of which will have a fire pit. Photo by Madelyn Edwards.

Tenison Hills, a neighborhood expected to be full of architecturally-distinct single-family homes, is under construction.

The near-Forest Hills development is at the intersection of Highland Road and Barbaree Boulevard and has 23 lots, seven of which border Tenison Park golf course. 

A couple decades ago, the 4.16-acre site used to be a mobile home park, but that was a non-conforming use as it is zoned for single-family houses, according to a previous Lakewood/East Dallas Advocate article. Calls for action from the City and neighbors led to the Board of Adjustment making the property conform to its use, and the mobile home park was closed. The space has been vacant since then. 

Tenison Hills contains one more home than what was originally allowed for the property by its previous zoning. Jim Moore, the developer and Bryan Place neighbor, had to go before Dallas City Council in 2021 to ask for a zoning change, which was unanimously approved, provided that there be setbacks to allow for vehicles to park in driveways. Originally, the plan was for 26 homes, but that was negotiated down in talks with neighbors, according to another previous article.

A few nearby neighbors did speak out against the rezoning at the council’s public hearing, with one bringing up concerns about tree removal and parking. When asked about opposition nowadays, Moore said any development will garner pushback from folks who resist change, but most wanted to see the property redeveloped.

“It was kind of a lovers’ lane. It was a marijuana grow at one point, kind of a place where people dumped stuff that they didn’t want,” the developer said of Tenison Hills’ old identity. “It’s much nicer now.”

Regarding stormwater, Moore said Tenison Hills utilizes underground drainage throughout most of the development in the backyards.

“We did have to do some regrading out here, and I went through 19 months of work with the City of Dallas to be able to build this development,” he said. “Without showing the City of Dallas that I would actually improve the drainage of this area here, I wouldn’t have been able to build this.”

“I think in 20 years it’s going to look totally different,” developer Jim Moore said of the garden park area. “It’s going to have a lot of people’s stamp on it.” Photo by Madelyn Edwards.

The neighborhood is not beholden to one style of home or floor plan. Some are more modern, including a one-story mid-century modern, and there’s a Texas Hill Country contemporary and a prairie style in the plan, too. 

“I don’t have to build a big two-story house on every lot,” Moore said. 

What ties all the homes together is the alfresco dining option and lots of windows. Moore expects the buyers will be young families, families with teenagers and empty nesters, who will appreciate the lower maintenance, lock-and-leave properties. The houses are also designed with the idea that residents will be working from home.

The neighborhood’s residences will have pedestrian access to the golf course and be in close proximity to the Trinity Forest Spine Trail, Moore said. There are also two park areas near the entrance and exit for the future Tenison Hills neighbors to enjoy, one of which will have a fire pit. Measures will be put in place to prevent the parks from being all-night hangout spots, but it may encourage neighbors to meet each other and be social. After the first 36 months, maintenance of the park areas is expected to be split among neighbors, who will also have the opportunity to make it their own.

“I think in 20 years it’s going to look totally different,” Moore said of the garden park area. “It’s going to have a lot of people’s stamp on it. I had a gentleman that was looking at this lot who said, ‘If I paid for it, could I put in a water feature of some sort?’ I said, ‘If you got the money, and it is professionally done and all that, I would be fine with that.’”  

Moore estimates that after the first home is completed, the rest should be finished in about two and a half years, depending on the market. 

For more information, visit Tenison Hill’s website.