Dirt has finally started to move for the highly anticipated Crescent Real Estate mixed-use project at the corner of West 7th Street and Van Cliburn Way in Fort Worth’s Camp Bowie District. The two empty lots are the site of developer John Goff’s First Crescent development. The two empty lots are the site of developer John Goff’s First Crescent development. The ambitious project includes a 200-room luxury hotel, located on the west side of Van Cliburn, and the 26,000-square-foot Canyon Ranch spa and fitness center. The indoor-outdoor rooftop bar of the hotel, which will have stunning views of the Modern Art Museum and the Kimbell Art Museum, will be named Ralph’s Bar, a nod to Fort Worth’s Mary Ralph Lowe, a noted philanthropist and real estate investor. Lowe and Goff struck a deal on the site; she asked for the naming rights as part of the negotiation. The hotel will include a restaurant and spacious ballrooms/meeting space. A courtyard offers the opportunity for outdoor events.

Also in the works are the corporate headquarters for Crescent and Goff Capital, plus 170 luxury residential units. Goff, a longtime resident of Fort Worth, says the project will look and feel different from the Dallas Crescent development; a mid-2023 completion is projected. Just a few miles west, preliminary work has started on the Bowie House development although there has been no official word of a “groundbreaking.” Here’s what we know on where that project stands:

• In 2020, the City Council approved the plan from developer Jo Ellard to build a hotel with 120 rooms, four floors and 11 adjacent town homes in the 3700 block of Camp Bowie. 
• In response to neighborhood concerns about density, Ellard reduced the number of town homes in the development to eight.
• A request to park construction office trailers at the northwest corner of Camp Bowie Boulevard and Dorothy Lane was withdrawn in August. 
• An agreement between neighborhood associations and the developer to limit construction to five days a week wasn’t binding. Six days of construction, with Sundays as needed, are still under consideration.
• Where construction trailers will be set up and which route trucks will travel to the site is unknown (the neighborhood’s preference is travel into and out of the zone via Montgomery rather than a longer stretch of travel along the bricks to Interstate 30 via Hulen Street).
• The developer has requested that the westbound, outside lane of Camp Bowie from Clarke Avenue to Dorothy Lane be closed for one year. 
• Bryan Botterman, of real estate services and investment firm Coldwell Banker Richard Ellis, plans to set up a website to share Bowie House hotel updates.
• Fort Worth District 7 Councilman Leonard Firestone met with the developer in mid-August in hopes of resolving outstanding issues and obtaining reassurances that the character of the neighborhood will be respected during all phases of construction. 

The Westin Dallas Southlake gets a chef and a new opening date

With a target opening month of November, another hotel joins the mix in Southlake’s busy 114 corridor. This Marriott Bonvoy property features 235 rooms and 26 suites, plus a spacious indoor-outdoor event area and resort-style pool — and yes, the hotel is pet friendly. (Need to use those Marriott points? Think staycation.) The hotel did announce a key employee: Chef Jenna Kinard, pictured, will oversee the Seasons 114 restaurant. Kinard formerly worked at Max’s

Wine Dive in Fort Worth before being tapped for the then-in-the-works Hotel Drover in Fort Worth’s Stockyards. The Drover, also a Marriott property, and Kinard parted ways before the hotel opened. In Southlake, she’s creating the menu, which will include “reimagined Southern/American classics” with an emphasis on shared plates and seasonal ingredients. Seasons 114 will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus weekend brunch. 1200 E. State Highway 114, Southlake, 817-873-1900, marriott.com/hotels/travel/dalws-the-westin-dallas-southlake

Hotel Dryce is small in size but big on details

A first for Fort Worth’s Cultural District, this 21-room boutique hotel will make you feel like you’re staying in Marfa or even Austin in the early days. Jonathan Morris and Allen Mederos are friends, entrepreneurs and now business partners, and they tapped a lot of friends, entrepreneurs, local businesses and craftspeople to make their vision come true. Perched on the edge of an established neighborhood but within a stone’s throw of Dickies Arena, the building is a mix of modern meshed with vintage. The remnants of the dry ice warehouse that once sat in this neighborhood form the outdoor patio, which is dog friendly. Some of the faded paint remains on the old concrete floor; old signage is used to good effect inside and out. Inside, the eye-catching artwork by local talent is unique and a far cry from hotel art of yesteryear. 

Each room, from the suite to “The Practical,” the smallest room available, features custom birch-wood furniture, window coverings made of Oaxacan rugs and curated artwork including photography from area artists. Each piece made us want to know more about the creator. We’re also in love with the shampoo, soaps and lotions (Morris also owns a Fort Worth barbershop and knows his bath products). O’Douds plant-based potions are made in Houston; Hotel Dryce has an exclusive line and, yes, the products are sold in the lobby. Not traveling soon? Go have a drink at The Lobby Bar, which is cool and inviting. It’s already a prime gathering space on weekends and for special events. Check it out on a weekday for a more relaxed vibe. You’ll feel like you’re on vacation, at least for an hour or so.