Argyle gains 62 acres in land swap with Flower Mound

ARGYLE, Texas — Argyle will gain more than 60 acres from Flower Mound under a land swap both towns say will make development along Interstate 35W more workable. Argyle Town Council unanimously approved the deal at its Sept. 21 meeting. The town agreed to send 8.3275 acres on its west side to Flower Mound in exchange for 62.155 acres, according to the Cross Timbers Gazette. Both parcels sit near I-35W, close to Flower Mound's proposed Monarch development and south of Argyle Landing. Denton Creek and floodplain conditions split the land in ways that made it hard for either town to use the tracts as they stood. The swap realigns the boundary so each town ends up with acreage on its preferred side of the floodplain. About 55 acres Argyle will receive on the eastern portion is expected to stay as natural or open space. When Argyle accepted that land as a donation from the property owner at its Aug. 17 council meeting, the town agreed to limit any building there to town-owned facilities such as a park or sports fields. A smaller piece Argyle receives — a little less than three acres along I-35W — is expected to allow additional commercial space on the interstate frontage. "Not often do we have the opportunity to get more space," Argyle Mayor Ron Schmidt said. "There are some limitations to this, but we can still make the most of it for our community and for Flower Mound, as well. It's a good trade." Council member Gustav Svehla raised traffic and parking concerns if a park is later built on the open-space acreage next to residential streets. Schmidt said the town would plan parking for any future park use and would avoid relying on street parking. The roughly eight acres headed to Flower Mound is described as key to preparing infrastructure for the proposed Monarch development, which is expected to include home-improvement and big-box retail with gas stations.