The battle over the site of the former Fairfield Lake State Park reached a pivotal moment Tuesday when the private developer who bought the land declined the state’s final offer.
Now the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will have to decide whether or not to move forward with the condemnation process and involve the attorney general’s office.
Dallas developer Todd Interests — which purchased the roughly 5,000-acre tract from energy company Vistra in June — has repeatedly said it will continue with its planned development of a luxury gated neighborhood even as Texas aims to use eminent domain to regain the land. The property in Freestone County, about 80 miles southeast of Dallas, includes the former park, Fairfield Lake and hundreds of additional acres.
About a week after the land was sold, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commissioners board voted to move forward with condemning the property in a step toward using eminent domain to restore the shuttered park as a public place. At the same time, it submitted an initial offer for the land, which Todd Interests did not accept.
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The state sent its second — and final — offer to Todd Interests on Aug. 3, TPWD spokesman Cory Chandler confirmed to The Dallas Morning News on Tuesday. The offer was based on an appraisal as required by law.
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