After years of staring at a shuttered grocery store, South Dallas is finally getting something new on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard: Thirty21, a roughly $20 million mixed-income midrise that aims to bring apartments and services back to a quiet stretch of the corridor. The project, billed as a mix of market-rate and income-restricted housing, is being pitched as part of a broader push to add denser living options where midrises have been rare for decades.
According to WFAA, the development carries an estimated $20 million price tag and will rise on the former Save-A-Lot site along MLK. The station's June 24 report featured early renderings of the midrise and initial commentary from the team steering the project.
What Thirty21 Will Include
According to the Dallas Housing Foundation, Thirty21 is planned as an 86-unit mixed-income building that will also house an on-site community technology and innovation center focused on digital literacy and job readiness. Project materials outline a roughly 50/50 mix of affordable and market-rate apartments, with amenities aimed at working families and essential workers. Developers describe it as the first midrise of this scale along the MLK corridor.
Who Is Behind It And How It Will Be Financed
According to Dallas Weekly, the development team is led by Scottie Smith II in partnership with Courtney Hemsley, and the deal is structured through a Public Facility Corporation, or PFC. That approach is intended to secure long-term affordability while pulling in private capital to get the midrise built. The outlet also reports that, under the PFC model, the property would be removed from the standard tax rolls, although the developers say they plan to make voluntary contributions to the Sunny South Dallas Public Improvement District.
Zoning And Why The Timing Matters
According to the City of Dallas, the South Dallas/Fair Park Authorized Hearing, known as PD 595, was adopted this month to guide zoning and new development along the corridor. At the state level, Texas Senate Bill 840, which takes effect in 2025, allows certain mixed-use and multifamily projects to be built by right on commercially zoned property, which cuts rezoning risk when converting vacant retail sites. Developers point to these policy shifts as a key reason the old Save-A-Lot parcel now pencils out better as a midrise project than as new retail.
Next Steps And Timeline
According to Dallas Weekly, the team expects to break ground in the fourth quarter of 2026, with completion targeted for 2028. As the project moves through permitting and onto the construction phase, they say they plan to coordinate with the Sunny South Dallas Public Improvement District on neighborhood efforts that include lighting, safety patrols and streetscape improvements.
What Neighbors Can Expect
Residents can expect to start seeing city permitting filings and public notices tied to Thirty21 in the coming months, and community leaders have signaled they will be watching for specific commitments around local hiring and on-site services. According to the Sunny South Dallas PID, the district's service plan focuses on public safety, beautification and support for small businesses, tools that project backers say will help direct some of the development's benefits into the surrounding neighborhood.
