Luxury mobile home community set to open in 2023
Both the company that owns and manages the Pearland Regional Airport and the developer of an adjacent manufactured home community say they are working with the Federal Aviation Administration to ensure the 418-home development won’t negatively impact airport safety or operations.
Construction began in May for the Landing, a 55-acre site at 17730 County Road 127 that the developer, Live Lone Star, describes as a “resort style manufactured home community,” with amenities that include a pool, sports courts and a 6,000-foot clubhouse.
‘The Landing’ is set to welcome its first residents — who will purchase the homes but lease space they occupy — in 2023.
But its sudden appearance on the radar is a point of concern for those who live or work nearby.
“We were not told about the development until May, and by then they had all their permits,” says one longtime resident and business owner. “There was nothing we could do.”
Several neighbors are concerned about the development, particularly in light of a July 8 report from the Federal Aviation Administration’s Fort Worth office that states the development’s planned detention pond adjacent to the airport’s runway 14-32 “would be a hazard to navigation.”
In a letter to the developer, FAA civil engineer Frank Snell writes, “The FAA recognizes residential development adjacent to airport property as an incompatible land use.”
In an Aug. 15 statement emailed to the Reporter News, a spokesperson for Live Lone Star stated the detention pond “was designed to current FAA standards and is being built as such, noting that the FAA later sent a compliance officer to verify the pond was outside the runway safety area.
“One of the concerns we’ve been hearing is that this is going to lead to the closure of the airport, and nothing could be further from the truth,” says Stephen Alexander, president of Clover Acquisition Corporation and Texas Aviation Partners, which owns and operates the Pearland Regional Airport. “Our intention is to not only keep the airport open but for it to grow and flourish.”
Alexander points to a July 18 Safety Area Evaluation for Runway 14-32 — the runway noted in the FAA aeronautical study. In this report, Safety Inspector Gary Loftis states the runway safety area met standards, and recommended that the gradient and drainage flow in specific areas be monitored.
“We’ve worked very closely with the developer and with an aviation consultant to make sure that this development meets standards for everybody,” Alexander said on Aug. 16. “That includes rules and regulations for everybody who is a resident at the project — and they are extensive.”
The target market for the Landing is working middle-class residents who have been priced out of the traditional housing market by surging real estate costs. Unlike conventional single family neighborhoods, residents must pass a background screening and sign a list of regulations regarding vehicle permits, noise, visitor access, home site standards and landscaping, according to the developer. In addition to purchasing their home, residents will pay a monthly HOA fee of $550 to $675.
Since the Landing lies in an unincorporated part of Brazoria County, city zoning does not apply. The site is, however, part of the City of Pearland’s extra-territorial jurisdiction, or ETJ.
The Pearland site is one of three developments underway in the greater Houston area. Live Lone Star was founded in 2020 by Chris White, Jeff Mickler, and Sean Mickler of Friendswood-based Jacob White Construction.
