Lennar Homes to build over 100 elongated homes in Norman

Jun. 30—One of the largest homebuilders in the U.S. will add more than 100 homes to the Norman housing supply just north of State Highway 9.

Lennar Homes of Oklahoma plans to build The Villages, a single-family residential community on a 16.32-acre tract of property north of east Imhoff Road and west of Oakhurst Avenue, north of Hitachi's Norman facility.

The Ward 1 development will have 109 lots and 6.7 homes per acre.

The Villages will be the first development project in Norman for the nation's second-largest homebuilder. Lennar Homes estimates a late 2022 early 2023 start date on The Villages.

According to an applicant presentation Tuesday, The Villages will allow for 30 by 100 foot lots for detached single-family homes. The site plan shows one winding street through the development with an emergency access point for fire trucks and EMS in the southwest area of the neighborhood.

Sean Rieger, who represented Lennar Homes, said they didn't include a second entrance in the plan due to a Hitachi truck bay across the street.

"We really don't want to interfere with that," Rieger said. "That's the main genesis for why we've tried to keep that as a sensitive area."

Cost per unit in The Villages will be determined based on the market, Rieger said. Assuming costs continue to increase, Lennar Homes estimates prices around $250,000 with homes ranging from 1,000 to 1,500 square feet.

Rieger said that cost is not exact and could fluctuate due to construction costs and multiple pending rate increases by the Federal Reserve.

Rieger said the Villages would have single and two-story homes. Renderings show elongated two-story homes with a driveway and garage frontage. He said the style of home is unique and has done well in the Texas market.

The community will be maintained by a home owners association

Amenities include sustainable landscaping, grills, benches and shaded pergola.

With a signalized intersection to the west, Rieger said traffic mitigation is in place for any increase in traffic.

Ward 1 City Councilmember Brandi Studley said a traffic study shows the intersection of Oakhurst and Imhoff at 18% use. With the addition, it will increase to 27%.

"It's not a huge increase in traffic, so I'm really not worried about that," Studley said.

Norman City Council approved the development request unanimously on Tuesday.

Studley said the chief concern among her ward's residents was the development's potential impact on Bishop's Creek.

Tyler Muzny with Johnson and Associates Engineering said all stormwater will be routed to two detention ponds, one on the eastern boundary and one in the western portion of the area.

Lee Hall said the only way to strengthen stormwater mitigation is parcel by parcel, when plans come before council.

Musney confirmed additional stormwater mitigation will decrease the amount of flow to Bishops Creek.

Studley said Norman and particularly her ward needs more single family homes as opposed to apartments and was excited to see the project presented for that reason.

Additionally, she approved the project because it doesn't create sprawl.

"We aren't going into ward 5 or 6; it's staying in the city," Studley said. "I appreciate the thoughtfulness in the project, I like the look of the homes, I think they're really pretty and I'm excited to see it in Ward 1."

Jeff Elkins covers business, living and community stories for The Transcript. Reach him at jelkins@normantranscript.com or at @JeffElkins12 on Twitter.