North Texas city halts growth as development expands – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

A North Texas city is temporarily putting a halt to its rapid growth: The city of Princeton has approved a four-month pause on approving new housing projects.

City officials in Collin County said Princeton is growing so fast that utilities and police are struggling to keep up, and a pause was needed to allow the city to expand safely.

During their meeting Monday night, the Princeton City Council passed an official moratorium — a legal measure that blocks new residential building permits for 120 days.

“It became apparent that we are growing much faster than expected or planned,” said Tommy Mapp, director of Public Works for the City of Princeton.

U.S. Census data showed that Princeton’s population exploded from just over 4,000 to more than 28,000 residents between 2005 and 2023. Last year, Princeton was named the third-fastest growing city in the country after its population increased by 22 percent.

City officials said Princeton's utilities have not kept up with the rapid growth. A city staff memo about the moratorium said, “The city's water, wastewater, and road infrastructure are operating at, near, or beyond capacity.”

“With the moratorium, we're looking for a little bit of breathing room,” Mapp said. “Time to reevaluate how we're growing, where we're growing, and how we're going to continue to grow in the future.”

Princeton leaders said they could use the next four months to draft new zoning, subdivision and road plans to manage growth.

But utilities weren't the only problem: Princeton police said the department needed 30 additional officers to meet the demand of its current staffing levels.

“We've been extremely busy the last couple of months, we need a little bit of a break so that we can, number one, catch our breath,” said Princeton Police Chief James Waters. “And number two, with the recent budget approval, hire these new officers and give us a chance to train them.”

The housing moratorium proposal was unanimously passed by the City Council, with some residents saying they believed it would give Princeton its best chance of success in the years to come.

“I imagine it would be quiet in the meetings if you weren’t so busy approving developers who are devouring our community’s land,” Dorinda Powell said. “And thank you for being considerate of the residents who already live here.”

Under Texas law, residential projects already underway are not affected by the moratorium. Anyone who believes their project should be permitted can apply for a waiver, which the city council must vote on.