Legal 500 rankings are highly selective, recognizing only a limited number of firms in each practice area following an extensive evaluation process that includes law firm submissions, interviews with leading practitioners, and feedback from clients worldwide.

This recognition is particularly meaningful because it reflects the confidence our clients place in us and the exceptional work we are privileged to perform on their behalf. We are honored to work alongside communities, governmental entities, developers, and other stakeholders on innovative and transformative projects that support growth, strengthen infrastructure, and enhance quality of life across Texas.

We are grateful to our clients for their trust and partnership and proud of the ABHR team whose dedication, responsiveness, and commitment to excellence make recognitions such as this possible. This achievement reflects the outstanding clients we serve and the collaborative efforts of our professional staff.

We thank our clients and colleagues for their continued confidence in ABHR and congratulate our entire team on this distinguished recognition.

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You can read the Bisnow article here which explores how Municipal Utility Districts (MUDs) have become a foundational tool in supporting Texas’ rapid population growth, housing demand, and large-scale community development. As master-planned communities continue expanding across the state, the article explains how MUDs help finance and deliver critical infrastructure — including water, sewer, drainage, roads, parks, and recreational amenities — that might otherwise delay or limit development.

ABHR partner David Oliver contributed legal and public finance insight to the piece, discussing how MUDs create a framework for long-term infrastructure planning while balancing accountability to residents and the needs of developers. The article highlights the role MUDs play in making development financially feasible by allowing infrastructure costs to be funded over time rather than upfront, helping communities grow in a more scalable and sustainable way.

The piece also includes perspectives from several other industry leaders: Jimmie Jenkins of Toll Brothers, Lawrence Dean of Community Builders Advisory Services, and Rick Ellis of the Association of Water Board Directors. Together, they discuss how collaboration between developers, consultants, legal counsel, and district leadership helps support the continued expansion of housing and infrastructure throughout Texas.

Read the full article here

David Oliver is the Chairman of the Executive Committee at Allen Boone Humphries Robinson LLP, also known as ABHR. David has been instrumental in the firm’s growth since joining in 2004, just one year after its founding. Over the past two decades, he has helped shape ABHR into Texas’s premier law firm focused on complex real estate development and public infrastructure. In 2021, he was elected by his fellow partners to serve as Chairman of the Executive Committee, where he provides strategic leadership and oversees key aspects of the firm’s operations, including personnel and long-term planning.

Read more about David here

The post Why MUDs Are Essential for Texas Housing Development appeared first on ABHR.

As Texas continues to grow, master-planned communities are evolving beyond traditional neighborhood development. Today’s communities are increasingly designed around connection, wellness, and overall quality of life, with amenities, programming, and shared gathering spaces becoming a major part of the resident experience.

In a recent Houston Business Journal feature, ABHR Partner Angie Lutz discusses how developers are rethinking community design to meet changing resident expectations following shifts in lifestyle and social connection after COVID-19. Trails, parks, wellness spaces, community events, and other “third spaces” outside of home and work are playing a larger role in fostering engagement and creating a stronger sense of community.

The article also highlights the important role Municipal Utility Districts (MUDs) play in supporting these experience-driven communities. By helping finance critical infrastructure such as water, drainage, parks, and roads, MUDs provide developers with greater flexibility to invest in amenities and long-term lifestyle features that enhance the overall character and functionality of a community. The piece further explores the blended funding structure between MUDs and HOAs that helps sustain both the physical infrastructure and ongoing community programming over time.

Read the full Houston Business Journal article to learn more about how experience-driven development is shaping the future of Texas communities.

[Read the Article]

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ABHR proudly recognizes Partner Angie Lutz on her selection to the Women’s Leadership Initiative (WLI) Americas Executive Committee, a distinguished leadership body within the Urban Land Institute (ULI).

This appointment reflects Angie’s leadership, industry expertise, and ongoing commitment to advancing initiatives that support and elevate women in real estate and land use. Her three-year term will begin July 1, 2026, where she will collaborate with fellow committee members to drive impactful programming and strategic growth across the Americas.

In announcing her selection, WLI Americas leadership shared: “We were truly impressed by your application and believe you are an exceptional candidate whose leadership, experience, and commitment will help continue to move our WLI Americas initiatives forward.”

Angie Lutz added, “I am honored to join the WLI Americas Executive Committee and grateful for the opportunity to contribute to such an impactful organization. I look forward to collaborating with this incredible group of leaders to continue advancing WLI’s mission and supporting the growth of women across our industry.”

ABHR celebrates Angie’s continued leadership and the meaningful contributions she will bring to WLI and the broader industry. We look forward to supporting her in this important role and the positive impact ahead.

The post ABHR Congratulates Angie Lutz on Selection to WLI Americas Executive Committee appeared first on ABHR.

ABHR is proud to celebrate its continued partnership with Make-A-Wish, recently hosting Wish Celebration events across its offices in Houston, Austin, and Dallas in support of children whose wishes were to visit Disneyland.

Working alongside the Make-A-Wish North Texas, Make-A-Wish Central and South Texas, and the Make-A-Wish Gulf Coast & Louisiana chapters, each office created a uniquely themed celebration tailored to the wish child, bringing their interests to life and creating memorable experiences for them and their families.

• The Austin office hosted a baseball-themed celebration for 10-year-old Benny, whose love for the game inspired a fun and energetic event.
• The Dallas office welcomed 3-year-old Ollie with a magical Disney-themed celebration, filled with joy and imagination.
• The Houston office brought the world of gaming to life with a Mario-themed celebration for 5-year-old Benny, reflecting his love for the iconic character.

These Wish Celebrations build on ABHR’s ongoing commitment to Make-A-Wish, following volunteer days held across all three offices this past fall, as well as a tour of the Make-A-Wish Gulf Coast & Louisiana office in Houston earlier this year.

“ABHR is incredibly proud to be affiliated with an organization that does such meaningful and inspiring work,” said ABHR Partner David Oliver. “Being part of both the volunteer days and the Wish Celebrations has been an incredible opportunity for our team to see firsthand the impact of this partnership and to help bring moments of joy to these children and their families.”

ABHR remains committed to supporting Make-A-Wish through both volunteerism and community engagement and looks forward to its next volunteer day planned for this summer.

The post ABHR Hosts Wish Celebration Events Across Texas in Partnership with Make-A-Wish appeared first on ABHR.

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Provident Realty celebrates milestones including opening of second access road

The developer of a multibillion-dollar master-planned community on the south side of the Metroplex expects growth to accelerate after the completion of a significant piece of infrastructure.

Near the intersection of U.S. 287 and the 360 Tollway, Provident Realty Advisors Inc. is creating the 5,500-acre Goodland, which has been referred to as a new southern "gateway" to Grand Prairie.

An executive with Dallas-based Provident recently shared exclusive updates about Goodland with DBJ and pointed toward what's next for this huge project on the latest frontier for development.

About 750 homes have already been built in Goodland by companies such as David Weekley Homes and Highland Homes. Online listings for new homes currently for sale in the community show prices from around $360,000 to more than $600,000.

Goodland could eventually have more than 15,000 residences.

The opening of Goodland Parkway in mid-February was a major milestone, said Rylan Yowell, managing director at Provident. The 2-mile road took more than four years and $30 million to construct through a public-private partnership between Provident and Grand Prairie. The road links State Highway 360 and U.S. 287, with a future extension planned to reach U.S. 67 at the southern boundary of Provident's land holdings and Grand Prairie city limits.

Below: The location of Goodland, south of Grand Prairie and Midlothian.

Yowell said the new parkway creates a literal path for more development.

"It enhances connectivity and mobility," he said. "With that, we're able to activate more portions of all of our land. So there's only so much land that you can activate with rooftops off of a single point of access. Now that we have dual access points to major highways, it just paves the way for future growth."

Yowell said the road also improves emergency response times, with a Grand Prairie fire station just north of Goodland.

This summer, Yowell expects to open a large set of community amenities at Goodland. That includes a $14 million amenity center on 6.5 acres called "The Retreat," featuring a 6,000-square-foot clubhouse, 3,000-square-foot fitness facility, a 5,000-square-foot swimming pool and a stocked fishing pond.

Provident Realty

A major portion of the project entails restoring 1,600 acres of flood plain and creek corridors and creating a 25-mile system of walking and biking trails that weave through the community. Provident started on the trailhead last March.

Provident also will break ground on an indoor pickleball pavilion, and work on 750 home lots. Midlothian Independent School District plans to build an elementary school next year. A public park along Goodland Parkway is also in the works.

Plans also call for a mixed-use town center, which Provident calls a "downtown" for Goodland. The firm's website alludes to "a mix of restaurants, everyday neighborhood services and a just-right mix of local and regional retailers."

"We have a long-term commitment on this project, and we want to grow responsibly," Yowell said. "We sort of have a shared vision with the city of Grand Prairie. So there's a lot of things in the works."

Once it's finished, Goodland could feel like its own town, with an estimated 50,000 residents and $5 billion in taxable value. Goodland is registered as a census-designated place, so residents can put it on their driver's licenses.

However, Grand Prairie is gradually annexing property through a development agreement with Provident. Last year, the city annexed nearly 900 acres of Goodland.

The new community represents the development wave taking shape along the southern edge of the Metroplex. Plans were recently revealed for a community expected to feature more than 13,000 residences in Waxahachie, about 15 miles southeast of Goodland.

This part of DFW is also seeing lots of data center development, from an expanding QTS campus in Wilmer to Google's huge campus in Midlothian.

The post New Amenities, Hundreds More Homes in Works at $5 Billion Goodland Community appeared first on ABHR.

Article courtesy of Dallas Business Journal.

The Dallas–Fort Worth region is no stranger to growth. In recent years, however, that growth has accelerated into something closer to transformation.

Consider Princeton, a once-rural community northeast of Dallas. At the start of the decade, fewer than 18,000 people lived there. By mid-2024, that number had surged past 37,000, making it the fastest growing city in the country. Across the broader Dallas–Fort Worth region, five of the 15 fastest-growing U.S. cities are located within the metro area. Meanwhile, Fort Worth surpassed 1 million residents in 2024, joining Dallas as the only metro area in the nation with two cities above the million-resident mark.

As development pushes outward, particularly north of I-30 and into formerly rural areas, the use of special districts in residential communities has expanded. According to Steve Robinson, Partner at Allen Boone Humphries Robinson (ABHR), the reasons are largely economic.

The Economics of Attainability

“Since the beginning of the pandemic, infrastructure costs are up as much as 100 percent,” Robinson said. “Land prices have increased dramatically, and interest rates have gone up. All of that impacts housing attainability.”

Special districts allow developers to finance public infrastructure, including water, sewer, drainage, and roads, separately from the upfront cost of a residential lot. Without a district, those infrastructure costs must be embedded directly into the lot price at the time of sale to a homebuilder.

“In North Dallas today, development costs can approach $2,000 per front foot,” Robinson explained. “That’s potentially $100,000 in development cost on a single lot. If you have to embed that into the lot price, you immediately push the home out of reach for many buyers.”

By financing infrastructure through a district, those costs can be reimbursed over time rather than paid in full at the initial point of sale. The result is housing that is more attainable in a state already facing affordability challenges. Texas ranks near the bottom nationally in homeownership rates, and the average first-time homebuyer is now over 40 years old. For existing city residents, the district requires the infrastructure supporting new growth be paid for by the new residents, not subsidized by the existing taxpayers.

“In a housing crisis, this is one of the few tools that allows us to remove public infrastructure costs from the upfront price of a home,” he said.

Development Beyond City Limits

A second factor driving the rise of special districts in North Texas is geography. Much of the region’s growth is occurring outside municipal boundaries or within cities’ extraterritorial jurisdictions, known as ETJs. These areas surround a city and allow the city to retain certain regulatory authority.

Historically, cities could effectively determine whether a developer could use a special district in their ETJ. Recent legislative changes have altered that dynamic. Developers now have the ability, under certain circumstances, to opt out of the city ETJ if agreements cannot be reached, creating more flexibility to structure financially viable projects.

At the same time, municipal and county budgets are under pressure from property tax reforms that have compressed tax rates and limited revenue growth. That has constrained cities’ ability to independently finance new infrastructure to serve expanding communities.

“Cities and counties are challenged right now in their ability to expand infrastructure,” Robinson said. “Districts provide a way to finance that infrastructure through a dedicated property tax, rather than relying on already tight public budgets.”

The Rise of the Master-Planned Community

The growth of special districts also aligns with the expansion of large-scale master-planned communities, which increasingly shape the North Texas housing market.

Nationally, these communities continue to outperform the broader for-sale housing market, and Texas routinely leads the rankings. Of the 50 top-selling master-planned communities in the country, 17 are in Texas, and virtually all rely on special districts as part of their financing structure.

“Today, you’re simply noncompetitive without a district,” Robinson said. “Every large-scale master-planned community developer will tell you they cannot make the math work without one.”

The scale of projects has grown dramatically over the past two decades. Twenty years ago, a 200- to 300-acre development was considered large in North Texas. Today, projects can span thousands of acres and house tens of thousands of residents.

Robinson points to Grand Prairie as an example, where the 5,000-acre Goodland development is underway. At full buildout, the project could accommodate 40,000 to 50,000 residents and include mixed-use retail, office space, parks, data centers, and extensive community amenities. This project, cooperatively developed by Provident Realty and the City of Grand Prairie, will bring billions of new property tax base to the city.

“These are 40- or 50-year developments,” he said. “You need a stable financing structure that allows you to plan for the long term. The district provides that certainty.”

Importantly, not all reimbursement flows directly into lower lot prices. In many cases, it also supports enhanced amenities—trails, parks, open space, and community programming—that buyers increasingly expect. By separating infrastructure financing from lot pricing, developers can allocate capital more strategically across the project.

A Public-Private Partnership

Robinson describes special districts as the most basic form of local government. They are limited-purpose entities authorized to finance and provide essential public infrastructure. They are governed by elected boards and subject to open meetings laws and other transparency requirements.

He emphasizes that they operate as part of a broader public-private partnership. Developers phase projects carefully, building infrastructure and homes incrementally based on market demand and absorption studies.

“They’re constantly monitoring the market,” Robinson said. “You don’t build 3,000 acres at once. You build 100 acres, see how it absorbs, and move forward from there.”

In a region experiencing sustained in-migration, tight housing supply, and affordability pressures, Robinson believes special districts have become indispensable.

“The big picture is economics and regulatory change,” he said. “Without districts, or some other form of public reimbursement, large-scale residential development in North Texas simply isn’t financially viable. And without that development, the affordability challenge only gets worse.”

The post How Special Districts Are Powering North Texas Growth appeared first on ABHR.

Like driving on a tire with a bubble, it’s bumpy and annoying at first. But the farther you drive, the smoother it gets.

That’s how Duane Heckmann, Houston adviser at Land Advisors Organization, described developing master-planned communities in Houston amid rapid growth, rising costs and municipal pushback.

Panelists at Bisnow’s 2026 Houston Master-Planned Communities event, held on Thursday at the Embassy Suites Houston Energy Corridor, said that despite increasing challenges, the region remains one of the country's best places to develop, with special-purpose districts helping to ensure returns. 

“Houston is the land of opportunity. It’s the safest real estate bet in the United States,” Heckmann said. 

The Houston metropolitan area added more than 1.5 million residents from 2010 to 2023, and the Houston-Galveston Area Council projects another 3.6 million by 2050. This has led development to sprawl across a larger area, and master-planned communities help make counties like Liberty and Montgomery among the fastest-growing in the country. 

“It will continue to go as it has gone,” Heckmann said of the growth. “Will it be a little bit more challenging? Yes. Houston is full of entrepreneurs, smart people who will figure it out.” 

All the easy land has already been developed, but that has been said for 30 years, according to panelists.

Developers continuously expand their site options, sending them to previously rural cities to inquire about building. But that will never work in some cities, panelists said, stopping short of naming names. 

Read the Article

The post From Houston To North Texas: How MUD Park Bonds Are Redefining Master-Planned Developments appeared first on ABHR.

Like driving on a tire with a bubble, it’s bumpy and annoying at first. But the farther you drive, the smoother it gets.

That’s how Duane Heckmann, Houston adviser at Land Advisors Organization, described developing master-planned communities in Houston amid rapid growth, rising costs and municipal pushback.

Panelists at Bisnow’s 2026 Houston Master-Planned Communities event, held on Thursday at the Embassy Suites Houston Energy Corridor, said that despite increasing challenges, the region remains one of the country's best places to develop, with special-purpose districts helping to ensure returns. 

“Houston is the land of opportunity. It’s the safest real estate bet in the United States,” Heckmann said. 

The Houston metropolitan area added more than 1.5 million residents from 2010 to 2023, and the Houston-Galveston Area Council projects another 3.6 million by 2050. This has led development to sprawl across a larger area, and master-planned communities help make counties like Liberty and Montgomery among the fastest-growing in the country. 

“It will continue to go as it has gone,” Heckmann said of the growth. “Will it be a little bit more challenging? Yes. Houston is full of entrepreneurs, smart people who will figure it out.” 

All the easy land has already been developed, but that has been said for 30 years, according to panelists.

Developers continuously expand their site options, sending them to previously rural cities to inquire about building. But that will never work in some cities, panelists said, stopping short of naming names. 

Read the Article

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