STAFF REPORT
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FERRIS – The 5,200-acre Woodstone development is planned on the east side of Interstate 45 at Southcreek Ranch, according to Corey Ford of Tommy Ford Construction, which is working on the big housing development.
“If everything goes smoothly, we hope to start construction before the end of the year.”
Ford said the first 71-acre portion of the Woodstone community will include building lots for homes, and commercial sites on I-45.
“We feel like the timing is good,” Ford said.
“We have a mayor and city council that are pro-growth. We are going to have some starter homes, but also going to have more upscale housing.”
Ford said the developers are already talking to two builders who want to construct homes in the project.
Plano-based Dowdy, Anderson & Associates designed the residential community.
Ford said the town of Ferris has worked out a development agreement for the huge property.
“A year and a half ago we started working on this, and have builders interested,” Ford said.
The land along the Ellis-Dallas County line was assembled starting in the 1970s by Dallas businessman W. Ray Wallace, former CEO of Dallas-based Trinity Industries.
Wallace, who died in 2016, used the property as a cattle ranch and as the site of a large country house.
“He set things up so this property would be annexed into Ferris,” Ford said. “He wanted it to be a part of Ferris’ growth.”
Wallace’s wife, Bea, still lives in the ranch home, and said her late husband wanted to see the land developed.
“He always thought that it would be a housing development,” Wallace said.
“It’s a prime location, plus it’s a beautiful piece of property.”
With rolling hills, ponds, creeks and trees, the Wood-stone land is one of the largest such development sites south of Dallas.
The developers plan to build a formal entry for the project on the east side of I-45.
“There will be everything from $250,000 homes to $1 million-plus,” Ford said.
“We eventually see a town center development in the middle of the project.”
Ford said the project will take more than two decades to build out.
Demand for new homes in Ellis County is growing, said Ted Wilson of Dallas housing analyst Residential Strategies.
“A lot of builders have migrated down there and have found the market has been very responsive,” Wilson said. “We’ve noticed good results in several developments.
“There are an awful lot of people who commute up to Dallas,” he said. “It’s a lot easier commute than if you are living farther north.”
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