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Flower Mound – A 13-year Flower Mound resident examines what makes the city so special
By Melanie Medina
This article originally appeared in Denton County Magazine, Jan./Feb. 2020
If you’re not familiar with the Town of Flower Mound, there are a few things you must know about it. For starters, yes. There is an actual mound of flowers for which the town is named. More on that later. Next, we’re cool with you calling it “FloMo.” Those of us who live here affectionately abbreviate it as such in conversation and social media posts. Also, we’re serious about our peacocks. Again, more on that later.
Perhaps the most important thing to know about FloMo is that despite some squabbles among residents about whether we should grow or stay small, we’re all about making Flower Mound the best place to live, work, play and raise our kids.
“The best” is subjective, but by many measures, FloMo is pretty darn awesome. The town ranked 16th on CNN Money Magazine’s Best Places to Live in the U.S. list, and the National Council for Home Safety and Security ranked us the fifth best city to raise kids. Apparently, we’re a pretty happy bunch, too. Last May, we ranked second on a list of happiest small towns in America according to Top Counseling Schools.
Where It All Started
Flower Mound started with (you guessed it) a mound of wildflowers. The Wichita Indians — the most populous among several tribes in the area before it was settled by a group of Europeans in the 19th century — considered the mound to be sacred. Rumors abound that remains of Native Americans are buried in the mound, but excavation by a team of SMU archaeologists didn’t find any evidence of this.
Another legend that sounds entirely plausible, but for which there’s no evidence, is that practically anything built on top of the mound will blow away. Some say that the early Presbyterian settlers who came to the area in the 1840s tried to build a church there, but winds destroyed it.
“Historic records don’t substantiate these claims, but it stands to reason that it is possible. The Mound is about the windiest place in Flower Mound,” says the Flower Mound Foundation’s website.
The Texas State Historical Commission approved The Flower Mound — which sits at the northeast corner of FM 3040 and FM 2499 — as a historic site in 1984. Today, The Mound is surrounded by all the trappings of a town with a median age of 39.6 and average household income of $160,600: an H&R Block, Chick-Fil-A, 24-hour Walgreens and shuttered Tom Thumb.
The Mound rises about 50 feet above the blackland prairie that surrounds it, but honestly, it’s easy to miss when driving through town. It’s definitely not as obvious as other landmarks along I-35 E, like the Murchison Performing Arts Center at the University of North Texas or Reunion Tower in Dallas. (But fair warning: if you’re jogging along this particular stretch of 2499, your quadriceps will definitely notice it.)
Even so, The Mound remains hallowed ground. In the springtime, look just past the bluebonnets and you’ll see three crosses at the hill’s summit, thanks to volunteers from several local civic organizations who hoist them up before Easter. And in May, you’ll find an American flag attached to every post along the fence that protects The Mound’s 175 species of wildflowers from the traffic on 2499.
Peafowl and Mob Ties
In the 1940s and ’50s Flower Mound became an escape of sorts for a small-time Dallas gambler named Herbert “The Cat” Noble. He was in a long-running feud with gambling icon and career criminal Lester “Benny” Binion. Noble lived in Oak Cliff and owned a ranch that would later become the part of Flower Mound that borders Lake Grapevine.
According to local lore, Noble bought several peacocks to live on his ranch. His thinking was that when anyone came too close to his property, the birds would stir up a ruckus, alerting him to danger.
The peacocks did not live up to Noble’s hopes. In 1951, Noble was killed when a bomb went off as he checked his mail. In homage to Noble, developers eventually named the area Point Noble.
If you’re in the market for a home ranging from half-a-million dollars to $3.5 million, in an area that’s vibrant and growing yet as secluded as some far-off forest, Point Noble is a good place to look.
As for the peafowl, take a tour along Sagebrush Drive. If you don’t happen to see a kaleidoscope of blue-green-gold feathers on full display while you’re there, you’ll at least pass by the one-of-a-kind Peacock Crossing sign.
Top-Notch Public Services
Ask just about anyone why they chose to move to Flower Mound and virtually all of them will mention our public services and the town’s proximity to DFW Airport.
“We have a wonderful generation of young people in Flower Mound who are well educated by our public school system and who enjoy the arts, music and sports,” says Mike Wallace, who served on the Flower Mound Town Council from 2009 to 2011 and on the Planning and Zoning Commission from 2005 to 2009. “We also have top quality public safety professionals in our Flower Mound Police and Fire Departments.
Mike and his wife, Amy, moved to Flower Mound in 2004 and have no plans to leave. “I am so thankful Amy and I are able to raise our daughter, Bailey, in Flower Mound, and we plan to live here for the rest of our lives,” he says.
As part of Lewisville Independent School District (LISD), Flower Mound’s 19 schools serve more than 14,000 students. To date, 41 students have become National Merit Finalists, and we have a graduation rate of 99%.
In 1877, the area’s first school was founded: The Donald Academy (now the LISD STEM Academy at Donald Elementary). Since then, Flower Mound has taken the education of its youth seriously. LISD is home to the first STEM Schools of Excellence in Texas (recognized by the National Institute for STEM Education) and has more nationally certified STEM teachers than any other district in the nation.
For Michelle Wooten, Ph.D., the principal of the STEM Academy at Donald, this distinction is personal. When she was going through school, she says “no teacher or counselor ever talked to me about going into the STEM fields. After I became a mom with a daughter, I became passionate about ensuring she had no limitations.”
Beyond academics, Flower Mound schools have earned accolades in music education and athletics. Of 40 groups across the state that were invited to perform at Texas Music Educators Association’s annual convention, two are from Flower Mound: The Marcus High School Percussion Ensemble and the Forest Vista Elementary Choir. Our athletes have won 6A state titles in volleyball, boys soccer, girls soccer and marching band in recent years.
Community Character
What makes Flower Mound Flower Mound? Everyone has a slightly different answer, but the underlying theme is that it’s the people, of course.
Noti Krasniqi, co-owner of Mio Nonno Trattoria, says the people of Flower Mound can be hard to impress, which puts the onus on local business owners to give residents a good reason to stay in town — because we don’t mind a 30-minute drive to Dallas to get what want.
“If you do not impress them,” Krasniqi says, “they couldn’t care less, and I’m happy they are like that because whoever wants to come do business in this area, they have to think two times.
“That is what makes Flower Mound so special,” says Krasniqi, whose restaurant often has a line out the door. “When you make somebody think two times before they make their decision to go in, that guy really wants to be in, and you end up with quality over quantity.”
Krasniqi is not alone in wanting to bring quality food and a fun atmosphere to Flower Mound. The Lakeside DFW area, where Mio Nonno is located, offers plenty of reasons for residents to stay in Flower Mound. The mixed-use development expanded its restaurant and retail offerings in 2019 with the opening of The Tavern at Lakeside, Craft Pies, Rush Bowls, Burgerim and The Med Spa of Flower Mound.
Also, Flower Mound’s River Walk at Central Park area, anchored by Texas Health Presbyterian Flower Mound, recently welcomed new tenants, including a Merrill Lynch and Orange Theory. An amphitheater is set to open there in early 2020.
Environment, Art and Entertainment
Flower Mound locals also love our outdoor spaces. With roughly 60 parks encompassing more than 1,000 acres, and 60+ miles of trails, there’s a lot to love. “I think we have one of the most incredible parks programs, not just programming, but facilities,” says Town Manager Stathatos.
In 2019, the town’s Parks and Recreation division created a new position: Art and Cultural Programs Coordinator. Town leaders brought on Krissi Oden to fill the role.
“One of the things that I think sets Flower Mound apart is their really strong pride in the environment and taking care of the parks and trees,” says Oden, who leads several efforts aimed at getting residents outside and in touch with their inner artist. In July, for example, to recognize national Park and Recreation Month, Oden and town leaders organized Chalk the Walk, where residents used chalk to decorate sections of the cement pathway in Heritage Park.
Other initiatives she’s leading include the decoration of otherwise drab-looking traffic signal boxes throughout town. Residents are invited to submit design ideas, and winning designs are printed on vinyl and adhered to traffic signal boxes throughout town. So far, three have been adorned with artwork with three more to come in 2020.
This past November, Keep Flower Mound Beautiful and the town’s Parks and Recreation division teamed up to create a challenge for residents, based on recycling and repurposing materials. Keep Flower Mound Beautiful’s new mascot, the Flower Moundster (a peaceful guy), hides treasure boxes containing small objects inside. Residents who find the boxes have to repurpose what they find, take a picture of their creation and submit the photo to Parks and Recreation. Submissions will be on display at the library, and prizes will be awarded. The treasure hunt is ongoing, and themes for the boxes change each month. (Sign up at flower-mound.com/list.aspx for Art and Cultural Events updates.)
“At the end of the day, we are all working toward the same goal of making Flower Mound the best it can be,” says Flower Mound Mayor Steve Dixon. “We consistently make the ‘best places to live’ and ‘safest city’ lists for a reason. Our town staff work hard to keep Flower Mound running and serve our residents.”
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