Highland Village’s 75-acre park on the Lake Lewisville shore will still see some improvements, but rental cabins won’t be one of them.
City council directed staff to remove the 16 rental cabins from the improvement plans back in October 2025 because the projected revenue was not projected to be sufficient enough to justify the cost of construction.
An update from Phil Lozano, Highland Village’s parks director, at the council’s June 9 workshop revealed the revised plans and expected budget.
The plans still include upgrades to the park’s entryway with a new gatehouse, queuing lanes and plans for after-hours entry, as well as parking upgrades, trail connections and a new sign.
Pilot Knoll’s boat ramp is also expected to include a paddle sport launch, a courtesy dock, improved lighting and more ADA accessibility.
The day use area is also expected to see some improvements to existing structures and the city plans to identify various needs around the are that need attention.
Restroom updates are also included.
According to Lozano, the original budget, which was approved as part of the city’s 2021 Park Bond and included the cabin construction, was about $3.745 million.
The removal of the cabins is expected to drop the project’s budget by up to $1.4 million.
While the city’s original budget planned for cabin construction to be about $2.3 million, staff said the cabins might have cost upwards of $3 million today.
Part of the funding to pay for the Pilot Knoll improvements will also come from grants, some of which were originally planned to go toward cabin construction.
Some of those funds from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will be able to be reallocated to other parts of the project to improve the 60-year-old park.
According to the city’s work session on June 9, the design phase is about 70% done and council wants to ensure a structural engineer comes in to verify there won’t be any surprise costs once construction starts.
Council also continued to work out where there might be ways to further reduce the overall cost of the project, if needed.
Pilot Knoll Park is leased from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and offers RV and tent campsites, a day use area, boat docks, pavilions for rent, kayak rentals, a sand volleyball court and a fire pit.
