CUMBERLAND — Allegany County officials Thursday provided an update on a land development agreement with D.R. Horton, Inc. for a housing development that’s been discussed for nearly three years.
County commissioners in 2023 chose Horton of Dallas, Texas, to build houses on the former Allegany High School 12-acre site on Sedgwick Street.
At that time, Dave Caporale, county commission president, said the project was moving forward.
“It has been a long time coming and we are really anxious to get dirt moving,” he said. “We are in desperate need of housing and we want to be able to attract new residents to Allegany County and this is a great start.”
The school was razed in 2022.
As time passed, many residents said they were concerned about lawsuits filed against the company, but county commissioners repeatedly defended their choice.
In January 2024, county officials said they received from the developer site plans that were under review by engineers as well as planning and zoning officials.
In March 2025, county commissioners reviewed a neighborhood layout, home designs and park plan for the new development.
At that time, Adam Strott, the county’s economic development specialist, said 65 new residential units were proposed for the site and could include one- and two-story single-family homes, townhouses and villas.
“This is just a concept,” he said and added that the houses would be built as demand dictated and prices for the units had not been established.
Although a final contract with Horton had not been signed, earlier this year county officials said First Fruits Excavating of Ridgeley, West Virginia, had installed utilities, graded the property as needed, and were ready to install curbing and sidewalks throughout the parcel.
Thursday, County Administrator Jason Bennett said Horton recently provided a signed contract.
“The agreement was sent to us by their regional office,” Bennett said. “So there’s still one more layer of approval to go through by their corporate office.”
The agreement included changes regarding drawdown and retail purchase price schedules, earnest money, and how lots would be graded, he said.
The county will control the land until the project progresses, Bennett said.
Next, the agreement will be advertised for three consecutive weeks and commissioners can take action as early as July 23, he said.
“We did all the infrastructure work,” Bennett said. “We’ve spent about $4 million to date … with the intent of keeping these prices in check so it’s not fully subsidized housing by any means but the idea was to keep Horton’s prices at an affordable level for our residents.”