Paul Carden on Oak Cliff Apartment Project: ‘Don’t Build Multifamily in Dumb Locations’ 

During a time when multifamily has become a four-letter word among some Dallas residents, the City Council agreed last week to allow a local developer to build 26 units on the west line of Upton Street between East Clarendon Drive and Viola Street. 

The City Plan Commission approved developer Paul Carden’s request in March. It has been deferred by the City Council three times. 

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The project will include two affordable units with the remainder available at market rate. 

Carden, who serves on the city’s Zoning Ordinance Advisory Committee, told the City Council the project focuses on high-quality infrastructure, amenities, and accessibility near transit. 

“This development will provide 6-foot sidewalks where a bare dirt path exists today and tree-lined streets where residents today are currently exposed to sun and vacancy,” Carden said. 

Read the case report. 

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The project, on a small corner lot of about 22,000 square feet, will provide high-quality housing within walking distance of the Dallas Zoo, which more than a million visitors patronize each year. Carden is volunteering deed restrictions that limit the building height to 50 feet. 

“I understand that we want to find a silver bullet to the issues that plague our community, but I ask that the council see this as a small but meaningful step in the right direction,” Carden said at Wednesday’s City Council meeting. “With the City of Dallas improving the alley from its 2017 bond package and with this project handling the infrastructure for the rest of the block, we believe this is the best product we could deliver today for the city, for the community, and for future generations.” 

Architect Stephanie Behring told CandysDirt.com after Wednesday’s meeting that renderings would be available soon.  

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Councilwoman Carolyn King Arnold, who represents the Oak Cliff area where the project is slated, said she initially couldn’t understand how a three-story building would fit in on the small triangular corner lot. 

“I think it’s very important that we get out and look at the sites we are voting on,” Arnold said. “Maybe staff just Googles it up and looks at it and makes a decision. I have to deal with the constituents. They hired me to do that job, and I take it very seriously.” 

Arnold said she talked to neighbors and reached the conclusion that the project “can be built.”

‘Don’t Build Multifamily in Dumb Locations’

Carden spoke exclusively to CandysDirt.com after the rezoning was granted and said he’s excited to get started on the project. He expects to break ground in the first quarter of 2025 with construction lasting about a year. 

A key element to the Upton Street development — and any of Carden’s projects — is proximity to a Dallas Area Rapid Transit station. The Upton Street site is about 500 feet from Dallas Zoo DART Station. 

“Every single one of my cases is near transit,” Carden said. “You’ll never see me rezone for multifamily or density in general that isn’t within walking distance of a rail station. Positioning of multifamily is by far the most important thing to consider when adding density. I know everybody with [the ForwardDallas comprehensive land use plan] … wants to protect single-family [neighborhoods]. I’m like, just don’t put multifamily in dumb locations.” 

Carden says he doesn’t do “multifamily for multifamily’s sake.”

“I put it where it’s going to contribute to a greater place,” he said. “I’m kind of a retail and amenity-focused guy.” 

The timing of ForwardDallas — which some are concerned will give free rein for developers to build apartment complexes throughout the city — means that multifamily developers have to be a little more sensitive to the tension that already exists among homeowners and elected officials, Carden said. A rigorous zoning process remains intact and the ForwardDallas document, which has been approved by the City Plan Commission but is pending before the City Council, encourages “context-sensitive” density near transit stations and on corner lots. 

“I’m already trying to be more sensitive than most developers,” Carden said. “It doesn’t put a particular burden on me to deal with it during ForwardDallas. Any project that you see me doing rezonings for should ultimately be a good example of what people want to see. If you see me doing some big multifamily [development] away from transit, outside of a 10-minute walk from a rail station, let me know because I will be shocked too. Positioning of multifamily matters so much, and I think that nuance is getting lost in some of the ForwardDallas conversation.”