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Little Elm, Texas
Official seal of Little Elm, Texas
Seal
Motto(s): 
"Town With A Lake Attitude"
Location of Little Elm in Denton County, Texas
Location of Little Elm in Denton County, Texas
Country United States
State Texas
County Denton
Government
 • Type Council-Manager
Area
 • Total 22.09 sq mi (57.22 km2)
 • Land 17.99 sq mi (46.60 km2)
 • Water 4.10 sq mi (10.62 km2)
Elevation
545 ft (166 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total 46,453
 • Density 2,102.89/sq mi (811.83/km2)
Time zone UTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code
75068
Area code(s) 214, 469, 945, 972
FIPS code 48-43012
GNIS feature ID 1340088

Little Elm is a town in Denton County, Texas, United States, and a part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is an extended suburb of Denton; its population was 3,646 at the 2000 census. By the 2010 census, the city total had jumped to 25,898, making Little Elm one of the fastest-growing municipalities by percentage in Texas since 2000. As of the 2020 Census, the population of Little Elm was 46,453.

Geography

Little Elm is generally located along the northern and eastern shores of Lewisville Lake at the cross roads of Eldorado Parkway and FM 423 and includes stretches of U.S. Highway 380. Its neighbors include Frisco to the east, The Colony and Hackberry to the south, Prosper, Aubrey, and Providence to the north, and Oak Point, Cross Roads, and Lakewood Village to the west.

Little Elm is located at 33°9′50″N 96°55′49″W / 33.16389°N 96.93028°W / 33.16389; -96.93028 (33.163955, -96.930281). According to the U.S. Census Bureau, it has a total area of 18.6 square miles (48.3 km2), of which 14.6 square miles (37.7 km2) is land and 4.1 square miles (10.5 km2), or 21.83%, is water.

Appeal

Paloma Creek, Texas
Sunset at Paloma Creek's entrance in Little Elm, Texas.

Little Elm has more miles of shoreline (66 miles) than any city in DFW. Lakeside amenities off Eldorado Parkway include a cable wake board park, a boat ramp, a massive swim beach, a marina, an amphitheater on the water, and many miles of trail. Other park attractions include the disc golf course at McCord Park on FM 423.

Because Little Elm is rapidly growing and expanding, most of the city is new. These new constructions not only include new parks, government buildings, and businesses, but also include a diverse housing mix of estate residential custom homes, traditional single-family housing, townhouses, duplexes, multi-family, and manufactured homes. Some of the newer subdivisions include Paloma Creek, The Towers by the Park, and Frisco Ranch.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1880 116
1970 363
1980 926 155.1%
1990 1,255 35.5%
2000 3,646 190.5%
2010 25,898 610.3%
2020 46,453 79.4%
U.S. Decennial Census
2010 2020

2020 census

Little Elm city, Texas - Demographic Profile
(NH = Non-Hispanic)
Race / Ethnicity Pop 2010 Pop 2020 % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 14,326 19,422 55.32% 41.81%
Black or African American alone (NH) 3,621 8,420 13.98% 18.13%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 148 184 0.57% 0.40%
Asian alone (NH) 885 4,511 3.42% 9.71%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 12 27 0.05% 0.06%
Some Other Race alone (NH) 69 265 0.27% 0.57%
Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH) 609 2,407 2.35% 5.18%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 6,228 11,217 24.05% 24.15%
Total 25,898 46,453 100.00% 100.00%

Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.

Little Elm's Census population, as of April 1, 2020, was 46,453. Little Elm's build-out population is anticipated to be about 90,000.

Awards and honors

The Arbor Day Foundation designated Little Elm a Tree City USA community for its commitment to urban forestry for 3 straight years (2011-2013).

The American Planning Association, Texas Chapter, with an all-time record number of applicants, honored the Town of Little Elm with the Current Planning Award for its 2009 Commercial Design Standards Report.

The Texas Chapter of the American Planning Association honored Little Elm with a Certificate of Achievement for Planning Excellence award during the following years: 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014.

In 2013, the Cross Timbers Urban Forestry Council presented Little Elm with a Bronze Leaf Award for its commitment to urban forestry initiatives.

The Dallas Business Journal selected McCord Farm as a finalist for its 2012 Suburban Multi-Family Deal of the Year award. McCord Farm includes three phases of luxury multi-family developments along the FM 423 corridor and McCord Park, a wooded 38 acre public park along Cottonwood Creek donated to the Town of Little Elm and constructed by the developer.

The Texas Chapter of the American Planning Association named Chairman Michael McClellan the 2012 Planning Commissioner of the Year. This prestigious and competitive honor is awarded to only one (1) commissioner in the State each year by the Texas Chapter.

In 2010, Little Elm's Planning Department won the Texas Emerging Communities scholarship in recognition of its colossal 610% growth rate, modernized development standards, aggressive tree preservation regulations, and Town Center project.

In 2013, Little Elm was named the safest city in Texas by the FBI and the 18th safest in the nation for cities with a population of 25,000 or higher. In 2016, Little Elm was ranked the 13th safest by the FBI in the state of Texas for towns with a population of 10,000 or higher.

Parks

Little Elm has an extensive and comprehensive parks system with 5 major community parks, including Little Elm Park, Cottonwood Park, Beard Park, McCord Park, and Union Park. Little Elm has many miles of hike and bike trails constructed and planned along the lake and its tributaries.

Little Elm Park, located in the Lakefront district along Eldorado Parkway, offers a popular swim beach, boat ramp, an amphitheater on the lake, volleyball courts, soccer and softball fields, miles of trail, and hosts many special events such as the annual July Jubilee, Fall Festival, Summer Rhythms, Pumpkin Hollow, seasonal 5k and triathlon competitions, and many other live band events.

Cottonwood Park, also located in the Lakefront district at the southern terminus of Lobo Lane, is home to Cottonwood Creek Marina, softball fields, miles of trail, and is planned for future development. Union Park, currently under construction north of U.S. 380 by Hillwood Communities, is expected to be open soon.

Beard Park in Little Elm, Texas
Entrance to Beard Park in Little Elm, Texas.

Beard Park, located at the intersection of Main Street and Eldorado Parkway, is home to the Hydrous wake board park, the Taphouse beer garden, Hula Hut, future trails, future historic village, and is the future home of Little Elm's Farmers Market, which is currently set up in the Hobby Lobby shopping center.

McCord Park, located along FM 423, is a wooded 38 acre park containing gentle slopes, a creek, heavy tree cover, a fishing pond, and acres of open space. Amenities in the public park include over a mile of hike & bike trail, an 18-hole disc golf course, fishing dock, pedestrian bridges, picnic areas, and a playground. The disc golf course was designed by John Houck, a world-renowned disc golf course designer. The park will also be home to the Town’s 6th LED digital marquee monument sign, which will be the first on FM 423.

Through creative planning and zoning, McCord Park was donated to the Town and constructed by the developers (Western Rim) of the luxury multi-family projects adjacent to it. The total value of the land and park improvements is estimated to be over 5 million dollars, all of which was paid for by the developer. Vital to the Town’s master Hike & Bike trail plan, McCord Park provides an invaluable link from FM 423 to Veteran’s Memorial Bridge on Witt Road and eventually westward along Lewisville Lake to the Lakefront district. It also offers a critical connection point into Frisco’s trail system, which is part of a regional master trail system, one day ensuring that Little Elm residents could continually recreate to Dallas via trail without interruption.

Although the Dallas Business Journal already selected McCord Farm (including the apartments and McCord Park) as a finalist for its 2012 Suburban Multi-Family Deal of the Year award, the park has more planned.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Little Elm has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.

Infrastructure

Little Elm has access to the rest of the DFW metroplex via several regionally significant thoroughfares. The Dallas North Tollway is a 5-minute drive east of Little Elm, which opens up the greater north Dallas region to residents, including several large employment and shopping hubs. DFW Airport is about 30 minutes away by car, and Love Field is about 35 minutes by car.

Eldorado Parkway, a six-lane E/W thoroughfare through most of Little Elm, functions as the city’s main street. Eldorado provides a critical connection to the region by linking U.S. 75 and I-35E, including the Lewisville Lake Toll Bridge.

FM 423 serves as Little Elm's eastern boundary, although it crosses east of FM 423 in several places. This six-lane thoroughfare connects SH 121 in The Colony to the U.S. 380 corridor. The U.S. 380 corridor is in the northern part of Little Elm and provides an invaluable regional connection between two of the four county seats of the Metroplex (McKinney and Denton).

As of late 2021, TxDOT is planning to expand US 380 to a six-lane divided roadway with grade separations at specific intersections, and is currently at a 95% design phase. Other changes include continuous illumination along the corridor with the goal to improve nighttime visibility and safety. The primary goal of this project is to simultaneously improve through-traffic from Denton to McKinney (and vice versa) and to provide easier, safer accessibility to businesses and housing developments on either side of the 380 corridor. As of Feb 1, 2022, the plan is currently on a temporary hold due to budget changes from TxDOT.

The Lewisville Lake Toll Bridge, a North Texas Tollway Authority project, was opened to the public on August 1, 2009. The authority completed the Dallas North Tollway Extension Phase III in September 2007.

Economy

Downtown Little Elm
Near Beard Park in Little Elm, TX.

While Little Elm is often referred to as a "bedroom community," five companies/entities in the city employ over 100 people, per the Little Elm EDC – Little Elm ISD (853), The Town of Little Elm (311), Kroger (191), Lowe's Home Center (178), and Retractable Technologies (146). The 2019 Retail Trade population was 203,560. The unemployment rate in Little Elm, pre-Covid-19, was 3.7%. Little Elm residents work in a variety of sectors, including retail trade (13.9%), finance/insurance (11.6%), professional/scientific/technical services (10.8%), construction (8.6%), and educational services (8.5%).

Education

Little Elm ISD Athletic Complex Stadium
Little Elm ISD Athletic Complex Stadium in Little Elm, Texas

Three school districts serve Little Elm: Little Elm ISD, Frisco ISD, and Denton ISD. Generally, the U.S. 380 corridor is served by Denton ISD, the FM 423 corridor and east Little Elm by Frisco ISD, and the rest of Little Elm by Little Elm ISD. in 2020, Little Elm High School was reclassified to a 6A athletic program.

The Little Elm Independent School District serves most of the original parts of Little Elm. Little Elm ISD is one of the fastest-growing in Denton County. The school district finished building its athletic stadium in 2006 located at the intersection of Hart Road and Eldorado Parkway. The stadium has a seating capacity of 7,500 with great wheelchair accessibility, a newly renovated video board at the north endzone, and a three level state-of-the-art press box. Although the intent is to keep the community a one-high-school town, two new middle schools will open for the 2020-2021 school year.

A portion of the city is within the Frisco Independent School District.

During the summer of 2016, Denton ISD completed construction on its fourth comprehensive high school, Braswell High School, located at the southeast corner of Navo Road and U.S. 380, to serve the fast-growing University Drive corridor, which is part of Little Elm.

Notable people

See also

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