Rental homes featuring ‘smart’ technology planned for this Fort Worth suburb

Imagine living in a home where you push a button and ask someone to walk your dog or change a light bulb.

A developer has plans to build 67 single-family rental homes featuring the “smart home” technology on about five acres on Bedford-Euless Road in Hurst.

Last week, the City Council unanimously approved a zoning change request that will pave the way for Arlington-based ECM Development to submit detailed site plans for Eden Town Square.

T.J. Moore, president of ECM Development said during the April 13 council meeting that his firm specializes in land in urban areas that is difficult to develop.

“One of our mottos is, develop the undevelopable,” he said. “We want to find those vacant tracts of land and ask, Why?”

One-, two- and three-bedroom units will be for rent. They will feature 10-foot ceilings and 8-foot doors, he said. The average size is 1,000 square feet.

There are several floor plans so that every building looks different.

Other amenities include energy-efficient appliances, Shaker style cabinets and two sinks in the master bathroom.

The homes will have small front porches with room for a table and chairs to encourage people to be outside, he said.

Eden Town Square will also have a dog park with quality fencing and landscaping.

Moore said the “target audience” includes “renters by choice,” millennials who are tied to their professions and empty nesters who want a home but don’t want to deal with maintenance.

That is where the smart home technology comes in to play. Each home will have a touch screen system, and an app where people can push a button and ask someone to walk their dog or change a light bulb, Moore said. Some of the services will be subscription based.

Moore said he also wants to invest in the community.

“I want to keep the talent pool in the Mid-Cities, because right now, they are going to W. Seventh or they are going to Dallas or Las Colinas and to live in something similar to this ... I want to keep something here,” he said.

Moore said his company will oversee maintenance and leasing with strict leasing standards.

He also told the council that rents will begin at approximately $1,450 for a one-bedroom home, $2,161 for a two-bedroom and $2,400 for a three-bedroom unit.

Steve Bowden, Hurst’s executive director of economic development said Eden Town Square will be a walkable community where people can go to the nearby restaurants or shop at Target and Walgreens.

“Hurst is 99% built out. He’s taken five acres that nobody could figure out.”

Bowden said the timing is good because people may want their own cottage and may not want to share a hallway with anyone because of COVID.

According to the company’s web site, ECM was formed in 2019 and has several residential projects underway in Arlington and Dallas.