A Short Primer On Why sewer is such a hot issue in Fairview and Lucas 2-15-11 Back To Our Home Page I talk a lot about the potential ramifications of allowing sewer into Lucas and Fairview, but I'm not sure people new to the area realize what a big issue it really is.  Nothing illustrates it any better than the aerial below. Notice how open the land is in Lucas, which does not have public sewer.  You can still see many large tracts of undeveloped land.  Even the subdivisions you see show homes spread out from each other, mostly (but not all) on 2 acre lots and larger.   Now look at Allen, which does have public sewer.  Their high density subdivisions, apartments, and retail have taken up almost every inch of land all the way to 2551, which separates Allen from Lucas.  You don't even need a boundary map to see where Allen stops and Lucas starts.  So why does the high density residential stop right there?  There are two reasons.  First, the town of Lucas does not want to look like Allen.  They appreciate their open spaces, so they have zoned the land into larger lots of two acre minimums.  But that's only half the story.  The other reason is without public sewer in Lucas (and most of Fairview) each home must have its own septic system.  And any home with its own septic system must reside on at least one acre of land for the system to work properly.  It's a state requirement.  (By the way, these are not your father's septic systems.  They are actually mini-waste water treatment plants).  Even if Lucas wanted to develop high density residential, it's really impossible without public sewer. The land to the left of 2551 in Allen sells on a per square foot basis.  For instance, a retail site might sell for $8/sf.  That means land would sell for about $350,000 per acre. A large tract of residential land in Lucas today might sell for around $40,000 per acre.   That's because you can only get one home on it.  But turn that acre into high density residential, retail, or apartments, and the value skyrockets because you have more "paying customers" per acre.  If sewer is brought into Lucas, there's the potential a landowner could increase the value of their property almost nine times.  So what's stopping the expansion of sewer into Lucas and Fairview?  The citizens and city councils of both of those towns.  Both towns are vehemently opposed to sewer, but if there ever comes a day when the city council of either city decides to bring sewer in, our lifestyle will change forever.  And our exemplary Lovejoy school district would never be able to withstand the onslaught of growth. Bringing sewer in to Lucas or Fairview would be great for the large tract landowners and great for the developers.  But it would be a travesty for the rest of the people who love these towns the way they are.  Only time will tell what the future holds. Tom Grisak Estate Homes Realtors, Inc - Texas License # 0329533