Luxury mini-ranches planned for historic site north of Houston
A bit of Texas history is going up for sale, part of a luxury ranch development northwest of Houston on land that was home to some of the state’s earliest settlers.
A Houston development team has broken ground on a 1,899-acre master-planned community of turnkey ranches, called Gates Crossing, in Washington County about an hour from downtown Houston.
The land was originally settled by Amos Gates, believed to be the first white American settler to cross the Brazos River as part of Stephen F. Austin’s original colony, according to Compass Real Estate’s Houston office, which is marketing the site.
The site is being developed by a partnership of homebuilder Frankel Design Build and financial services firm U.S. Capital Advisors, both of Houston, which purchased the property just over a year ago. Frankel Design Build President Scott Frankel built his own ranch, called Low Creek Ranch, nearby.
The sprawling site is near Texas 6 and between Texas 105 and U.S. 290 between Houston and College Station. The ranch’s pastures have been rejuvenated with the planting of grasses and 1,000 trees.
Frankel Design Build has developed multiple gated communities, including Woodlands Reserve and Shadow Creek Reserve in The Woodlands and Spring areas. Frankel wants to apply this approach to building a gated community in a rural setting.
Frankel and U.S. Capital Advisors CEO Pat Mendenhall wanted to help homebuyers address the upfront hassles of building in rural areas by providing residents with access to new roads and infrastructure, including underground power, and assisting buyers with project management, in-house designers, architects and contractors.
“What’s unique about this place is it will be turnkey; we will design everything, we build everything and there will be a cohesiveness to Gates Crossing,” Frankel said.
The developer would also provide services such as landscaping, swimming pool management or generator services, if needed.
“I don’t think these are full-time ranches. There are people who want to have hay in their yard but don’t want to bale it themselves,” Frankel said.
Compass Real Estate’s Courtney Robertson and Samantha Medve have launched presales for the ranches, which range from 14 acres to 160 acres. Lot prices range from $600,000 to $4.8 million. While construction costs could vary based on how big or how extravagant a home is, costs are expected to be at least $300 a square foot, with the smallest home likely to be about 2,800 square feet, Frankel said.
Residents will have access to a 600-acre preserve with more than 3 miles of frontage along the Brazos River. (More than 1 mile of riverfront is accessible on private land.) There will be sections preserved for scenic recreation and areas managed for hunting of whitetail deer, doves, hogs, waterfowl and other wildlife.
The first residents are expected to begin moving into Gates Crossing in early 2025.
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