Denton's largest single roadway and utility project is projected to finish under budget, but city staff say rebuilding 118 street segments around the University of North Texas also showed where the city needs to do better at telling residents what is coming.
An informal staff report from the Capital Projects department puts the Neighborhood 2 and 6 project's estimated cost at completion at $86.35 million, including $79.1 million for construction and $5.75 million for design and preconstruction work. All three construction packages are projected to come in under budget, with total savings of just under $2 million, according to the report.
The work was paid for out of the $70 million in roadway reconstruction money approved in the 2019 bond election, which the city had committed to spend by the end of 2026. The project area runs roughly from Interstate 35E north to U.S. 380 and from Bonnie Brae Street east to Locust Street.
What was built
Crews reconstructed more than 37 lane miles of road and replaced 4.75 miles of water line and 4.5 miles of wastewater line, along with 3.5 miles of sidewalk, street lighting and some storm drains. The first package finished in March 2025, 101 days early; the other two were estimated to wrap up in October 2026.
Staff estimate the work directly affected more than 5,000 residents, 6,000 UNT student residents and 4,000 UNT faculty and staff.
Rebuilding Union Circle on campus took about 18 months of planning, and the construction schedule there was cut from 50 weeks to 22 to fit UNT's access needs.
Lessons the city says it learned
Mayor Pro Tem Stevens asked in August for a review of what went right and wrong, using the project as a case study for future city-funded construction. The report lists 12 recommendations. Among them:
