A developer wants to turn one of the last large undeveloped tracts inside Friendswood city limits into 135 luxury homes priced as high as $2 million, but first it has to deal with roughly 20 old oil and gas wells and six acres of salt-contaminated dirt sitting on the land. Woodlands-based lender Good Bull Capital pitched the Falling Leaf Ranch subdivision to Friendswood City Council, asking the city to issue a $27.6 million public improvement district bond to help pay for it.
Luke Cheatham, founder, CEO and president of Good Bull Capital, presented the proposal, according to Community Impact Newspaper. The 148-acre tract along Wilderness Trail came into Good Bull Capital and Jet Lending's hands after they foreclosed on assets previously held by Friendswood-based developer JMK5 Holdings, whose primary commercial venture, Mainland City Centre in Texas City, was forced into Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation after accumulating more than $13 million in unpaid creditor claims, as Hoodline reported. JMK5 surrendered its interest in the historic 92-room Commodore on the Beach hotel in Galveston, and Good Bull Investments received that interest in a transaction that closed in June 2025.
A Denser Plan For One of Friendswood's Final Big Parcels
Falling Leaf Ranch would bring 135 single-family lots to the property, a higher-density layout than the 44-lot plan JMK5 Holdings had previously floated for the same land, the station's report notes. City staff told council the project is expected to be the last development of its kind built inside Friendswood city limits, a notable claim given that the city is more than 85% built out. Friendswood's 2024 population was 41,030.
The projected prices only sharpen that scarcity story. Falling Leaf Ranch homes are expected to sell for $1.1 million to $2 million, with lots starting around $375,000 to $400,000. That price point sits well above the city's broader housing market, where the average home value stood at $464,253 as of July 2026, supported by a median household income of $126,508.
The $27.6 Million Bond Request
Good Bull Capital is asking Friendswood to issue a $27.6 million public improvement district bond, with $21.8 million earmarked for construction and infrastructure costs. Under Chapter 372 of the Texas Local Government Code, PID bonds are repaid through special annual assessments levied directly on property buyers within the district rather than through general municipal property taxes, meaning existing residents would not directly shoulder the new subdivision's infrastructure costs.
In exchange, the developer says Falling Leaf Ranch could generate $3 million in annual city tax revenue once fully built out. Good Bull Capital has also agreed to dedicate 7 acres of right-of-way for construction of the Friendswood Parkway extension, a project the Houston-Galveston Area Council's traffic study says is expected to reduce significant congestion anticipated by 2045.
Old Wells and Contaminated Soil Complicate the Build
The property's oilfield past is the proposal's thorniest obstacle. Roughly 20 oil and gas wells on the site were plugged between 1980 and 1997, and Good Bull Capital is now negotiating with the Texas Railroad Commission and ExxonMobil over modifying a 100-foot deed setback restriction that currently constrains how lots can be laid out around those wells. The Texas Railroad Commission does not maintain statewide setback requirements between homes and plugged wells, leaving those distances to municipal ordinances or private land deeds — which is precisely why the developer must negotiate directly with ExxonMobil and state regulators rather than rely on a blanket state standard.
Separately, the site contains roughly 6 acres of salt contamination from past oil drilling. Good Bull Capital plans to excavate 10 to 15 feet of contaminated dirt and replace it with clean fill dug from the neighborhood's planned detention pond. The developer argued the tract will not be cleaned up unless someone develops it.
A Resident Pushes Back on Replugging Wells
Not everyone on hand was convinced the plan is risk-free. Council member Robert Griffon opposed the proposal to replug abandoned wells, warning that tampering with a correctly plugged and abandoned well could itself be risky.
Friendswood City Council appointed Randy Hale and Michel Ross to a subcommittee tasked with leading negotiations on development and PID terms, including deciding whether tax increment reinvestment zone funds will be involved or whether the PID debt will stand alone. If development agreements come together, Falling Leaf Ranch is expected to reach its first lot closings within 22 months.
A Familiar Fight Over Density in Friendswood
The council's scrutiny of Falling Leaf Ranch echoes a fight from earlier this year. In February, Friendswood City Council rejected a Future Land Use Map amendment for Clear Creek Village, a proposed 391-unit development on FM 2351, after residents voiced strong opposition to added traffic density, as Hoodline reported at the time. With Falling Leaf Ranch proposing a denser layout than its predecessor plan, the subdivision is likely to face similarly close council evaluation before any bond or development agreement is finalized.
