wastin' away

Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville makes waves with first Texas resort

Jimmy Buffett Margaritaville resort pool bar

Grab those flip-flops, Parrotheads.

UPDATE: Texas' first Margaritaville Lake Resort officially opened on June 26, 2020 at Lake Conroe, north of Houston. To ensure the safety, health, and wellbeing of all guests during the coronavirus pandemic, the resort is emphasizing heightened standards for hygiene and cleanliness for guestrooms, amenities, common spaces, and restaurants, as well as protocols for social distancing.

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Texas Parrotheads, rejoice: Margaritaville is coming. The Valhalla of all things Jimmy Buffett and beach bums will take up residence in Lake Conroe — just an hour north of Houston.

Margaritaville Resort will boast 360 guest rooms, signature Margaritaville dining, a golf course, spa, and more, according to a release. Fans looking for their long-lost shaker of salt will have to wait until late next year for this 186-acre prime waterfront property to open.

The Buffett-themed getaway is taking over La Torretta Lake Resort & Spa. It will feature rooms in a main 20-story hotel tower, as well as waterfront villas on the lake. Two of the existing restaurants will be converted into signature, on-theme dining concepts: LandShark Bar & Grill and 5 o’Clock Somewhere Bar & Grill.

“We are thrilled to bring our first Margaritaville resort in Texas to the Houston area with an incredible location on Lake Conroe,” said Rick Cunningham, of Margaritaville Development, in a statement. “This resort will be a welcome escape for those in Texas’s major metropolitan areas and beyond, offering a lakeside paradise dedicated to relaxation, fun, adventure and the Margaritaville state of mind.”

The property will include an 18-hole golf course, tennis facilities, spa, more restaurants, pools, and 45,000 square feet of indoor/outdoor meeting space. It joins the nearly 30 current and upcoming Margaritaville resorts, vacation clubs, and casinos nationwide.

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DART News

Dallas section of Cotton Belt Trail near DART Silver Line finds funds

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A trail in the works for north Dallas has received an infusion of cash: The Cotton Belt Trail, located northwest of Dallas and planned as a regional trail corridor, will receive federal funds from the Regional Transportation Council (RTC).

The trail currently stretches 19.84 miles, stretching between North Richland Hills and Grapevine, with two additional sections in North Richland Hills and Carrollton. There are currently gaps between Grapevine and Carrollton, and another gap between Carrollton and Richardson, across Addison and north Dallas.

The funding was originally supposed to be funded city by city, says Dallas City Council member Carah Mendelsohn.

“We were told each city along the Silver Line would have to fund its portion of the trail project, but we worked together to get funding,” Mendelsohn says. “This RTC funding saves the City of Dallas approximately $7 million and helps complete a vision years in the making. We now have funding for the final unfunded segment of the Cotton Belt Trail in District 12, as well as the missing link of the Marni Kaner Trail needed to complete the North Dallas Triangle."

The North Dallas Triangle is a 4-mile urban trail circuit linking the Preston Ridge, Cotton Belt, and Marni Kaner Trails. When complete, this amenity will provide seamless access, enhanced further by upgrades to Preston Green and Campbell Green Parks, and the new Davenport Trailhead.

With design already underway and construction beginning next month, this 26-mile trail will follow the path of the Silver Line rail from Plano to DFW Airport, ultimately linking to Tarrant County and extending to Fort Worth.

The Cotton Belt Trail follows the former St. Louis Southwestern Railway, nicknamed the Cotton Belt Line, which began running in the late 1800s and was discontinued in the 1970s.

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