Crandall’s population roughly doubled between 2020 and 2025. Homes and lots keep moving through the approval process. The biggest road fixes along FM 741 are still in design or waiting for construction money.
The pressure reaches beyond city limits. Kaufman County as a whole is among the fastest growing counties in the nation. A review of public records shows how housing approvals compare with road work in and around Crandall.
The Growth Behind the Approvals
Census Bureau estimates put Crandall at 7,730 residents in 2025. The 2020 census counted 3,860.
Kaufman County added more than 50,000 residents between 2020 and 2024, according to Census figures reported by the Texas Tribune. That was the fastest gain of any Texas county in that period. The Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate for the county is 209,235.
Commuting adds to the load. Then County Judge Hal Richards said in 2019 that many residents commute to the Dallas and Fort Worth area. He also said rural residents depend on county roads.
What Is Moving Through Approvals
Crandall’s Planning and Zoning Commission handled a heavy agenda on May 12. It approved a preliminary plat for Eastland Phase 6, which covers 105.55 acres between FM 741 and Sunrise Boulevard in the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction. Homes.com lists 2,500 homes planned across the Eastland community built by Lennar.
The same meeting produced other approvals. The commission approved preliminary plats for a 15.062 acre lot in River Ridge North and a 1.682 acre lot in Cothran Malibu. It also approved a replat of 2.474 acres of Heartland commercial lots on FM 741 at Kings Forest Drive. A site plan for a proposed convenience store was also on the agenda.
In April the commission and then the city council granted a six month extension on the Eagle Crest preliminary plat. Cambridge Homes of Texas presented the request for property owner CLH Crandall LLC. The commission acted unanimously on April 14, and the council approved the extension on April 20 over one dissenting vote.
County commissioners also approved several smaller subdivisions. On Aug. 25 they approved a preliminary plat for Cheryl Acres, which divides 10 acres into five lots of about 1.1 acres. They also approved the final plat for Bikini Ranch Estates, which splits 35 acres into seven lots of 4.2 to 5 acres. In October 2025 they approved the final plat for Towering Oaks Estates, a 29 lot private subdivision.
The FM 148 Bypass and Two Pinch Points
TxDOT’s environmental documents describe the FM 148 bypass as a 1.6 mile road with two lanes and turn lanes. Each lane would be 12 feet wide with shoulders 8 feet wide. The existing FM 148 has two lanes 11 feet wide with shoulders 3 feet wide. It reaches US 175 about 1.3 miles northwest through downtown Crandall.
TxDOT’s Dallas District report for the fourth quarter of 2025 listed the US 175 interchange work at the bypass as a $57 million project. It showed the work 80 percent complete with a March 2026 end date.
At a January 6 county workshop, a presenter said the bypass was about to open and would ease truck traffic through town. The workshop also covered two pinch points in Crandall. They were the FM 741 intersection and FM 148 north.
By July, residents were telling the city council that an address change tied to the bypass had affected them. The council postponed a TxDOT presentation on the FM 148 redesignation to Aug. 3. The city’s TxDOT representative had been unable to attend.
FM 741 Waits on Money and Design
FM 741 is where the largest recent plats sit. TxDOT proposes widening 7.7 miles of the road from two lane rural to four lane divided urban between US 175 in Crandall and FM 548 in Forney. In 2020 the agency projected a spring 2025 letting for an estimated $85 million. That date depended on funding and right of way.
As summarized by the news site InForney, a July 2026 county transportation report gives the full project a 2031 target date. A first segment from US 175 to Spring Creek Boulevard is expected to let in May 2027.
The FM 741 bridge over US 175 is a separate need. The Crandall Economic Development Corporation approved $315,000 on May 15 for design work. The city council approved the agreement with Kaufman County on June 1.
County commissioners then accepted the money and approved a $1,341,918 engineering agreement with HDR. County staff said they will seek construction funding in 2027.
Crandall’s Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone No. 6 is meant to fund public infrastructure for new development. The city council took up the zone in December 2025. On Jan. 6 county commissioners held a workshop on joining it.
Presenters asked the county to dedicate 40 percent of its maintenance and operations tax revenue generated by growth in the zone. The agreement would limit the county’s share to infrastructure. The agenda also listed an item to approve it, but the records reviewed do not show the outcome.
Who Pays for the Gap
Kaufman County leans on bonds for major road work. Voters approved $104.1 million in road bonds in November 2019 with 77 percent support. Judge Richards said then that the annual budget could not raise enough revenue to make a substantial difference.
Costs have tested those funds. In January commissioners approved a $248,332.39 transfer of precinct bond funds. Higher than expected costs meant three roads were finished with oil and sand surfacing instead of chip seal.
Debt payments add pressure. In the summer of 2025 the county auditor presented two budget scenarios. In one the general fund would absorb the full increase in debt service and run $727,196 over budget. Commissioners said they would not raise the tax rate to cover the gap.
The county adopted its budget for fiscal year 2027 on Aug. 25. Staff said requests for new positions had been pared to keep it balanced.
Crandall’s own budget for fiscal year 2027 raises $655,497 more in property taxes than last year. That is an increase of 13.51 percent. Of that amount, $456,415 comes from new property added to the tax roll.
The council adopted it on Aug. 17. The city’s budget documents list street signs, street materials, street repairs and street drainage as separate line items.
Schools Add Another Test
Crandall ISD told county commissioners on April 14 that it expects growth of about 6.2 percent a year over the next decade. That equals roughly 614 more students a year. The district outlined plans for five elementary sites and a middle school. The middle school is planned to open in 2029.
The superintendent asked the county and TxDOT to coordinate turn lanes and deceleration lanes near the new campuses. The requests included Highway 148 near Prairie Chapel Road. He also asked for early planning on a bypass.
The court made no funding commitment. Commissioners said they would pursue TxDOT surveys and weigh the requests against future road bonds.
What Platting Can and Cannot Do
City platting authority is narrow. When a resident emailed concerns about the Heartland replat, the city manager told the commission it has jurisdiction only over platting. He said other entities must address the concerns.
Kaufman County’s subdivision regulations, in the version posted online, require owners to ensure adequate roads. They also bar final plat approval for recording until subdivision roads are complete. For Cheryl Acres, planning staff said grading and drainage work must come before final platting.
Those rules cover roads inside a subdivision. Widening a state highway falls to TxDOT. The public records reviewed for this story did not include current traffic counts for FM 741 or FM 148. Residents can request that data from TxDOT’s Dallas District public information office at 214-320-4483.
What to Watch Next
Four dates and decisions will show whether the roads catch up. The first is the expected May 2027 letting on FM 741. The second is the county’s push for bridge construction funding in 2027.
The third is the outcome of the tax zone agreement between Crandall and the county. The fourth is the 2029 opening of the planned middle school. Each one will shape how many new rooftops the existing roads must carry.
