Hillwood is approaching a significant milestone with its massive master-planned community in Denton.
Hillwood Properties and Hillwood Communities are developing what was previously called Hunter Ranch into a 3,200-acre residential community. Now known as Landmark by Hillwood, the community is expected to ultimately include 6,000 homes, 5 million square feet of commercial and mixed-use space and more than 3,000 multifamily units fronting more than 5 miles of I-35W, plus 1,100 acres of outdoor recreational space. Construction crews started moving dirt and developing lots last summer.
Now, a Hillwood executive said the company is approaching the finish line for the first set of home lots, planning amenities and has selected nine builders for the project.
Andrew Pieper, vice president at Hillwood Communities, said the company is about to kick off paving roads for its first master-planned community in Denton. He expects to deliver 747 home lots to builders by the year’s end or in the beginning of 2026.
“That’s a big milestone for us, to get the roads down, and then we really, kind of have our sights on the home stretch and being able to deliver lots to our home builders,” Pieper said.
Homebuilders will build across different lot sizes and product types, Pieper said. Those builders are M/I Homes, Coventry Homes, Highland Homes, American Legend Homes, Perry Homes, Toll Brothers, Drees Custom Homes, Tri Pointe Homes and David Weekly.
Hillwood also scored its first commercial element to the community. San Antonio-based H-E-B announced in March it was moving forward with opening its first grocery store in Denton after contemplating another nearby location. Pieper confirmed that the grocer closed on the land.
“We couldn’t be more excited to have them adjacent to our first phase and really effectively opening shortly after our grand opening,” he said. “That’ll just be a magnet for additional commercial growth over the coming months and years.”
Pieper said amenities for the community are also in the works. Those will include a resort-style pool, outdoor pavilion, outdoor amphitheater and stage. A large emphasis will be placed on trails. The community is centered around Pilot Knob, a 900-foot-tall geologic and ecological site. There are three different hilltops in the center of the property, creating opportunities for hiking trails and parks. Hillwood is in the middle of starting some of the trails as part of the first phase.
Hillwood is working closely with the City of Denton on efforts such as bringing regional infrastructure projects to serve the southwest portion of the city, park opportunities and identifying sites for schools and fire stations.
“We really see Landmark as being the next generation of Denton — Denton 2.0,” Pieper said. “By no means replacing what they have. But how do we accentuate it? How do we embrace it, and how do we highlight it? And so that’s vitally important to us.”
Hillwood, the firm of Ross Perot Jr., is a real estate giant active in residential, industrial, office and mixed-use. It has other major master-planned communities underway across Dallas-Fort Worth, including Legacy and Ramble in Celina and Treeline in Justin.