Fairfield Lake State Park to temporarily reopen to public ahead of sale to developer

Fairfield Lake State Park, which closed to the public at the end of February in preparation for the land’s sale to a private developer, will temporarily reopen Tuesday, at no charge to visitors.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department on Monday announced that the park would reopen for day use only. Admission will be free.

The state closed the park on Feb. 28, shortly after it received a lease termination notice from the private landowner, power company Vistra Corp. Vistra has leased the 1,800 acres of park land to the state for about 50 years and is now selling its property to a private developer. Dallas-based development company Todd Interests plans to transform the park land, and a few thousand surrounding acres, into a gated community of multimillion-dollar homes.

Vistra gave the state 120 days’ notice to vacate the park, and the state Parks and Wildlife Department decided to close the gates early to allow time for wrap-up activities such as reassigning staff. But last week, the state House’s Culture, Recreation & Tourism committee held a hearing about the park, and committee chair Rep. Trent Ashby asked if it would be possible to open the park for a while.

The park’s closure has triggered responses from residents across the state. Some lawmakers have filed bills seeking to use eminent domain authority to take back the park land. And while a representative from Todd Interests has indicated that the developer has every intent to move forward with the development project, state officials have continued to say that they’re still trying to place the park back into public hands.

“While we still stand committed to reaching a compromise that would save Fairfield Lake State Park for future use, our team will be working hard to keep this gem as accessible as possible for as long as possible,” said State Parks Director Rodney Franklin in a statement.

A spokesperson for the Parks and Wildlife Department said it’s unclear how long Fairfield Lake State Park will remain open on a day-use basis. The state’s lease will be officially terminated in June. While it is temporarily reopened, the park will not be accepting reservations or overnight stays.

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