Fidelis Realty Partners Breaks Ground on Retail Center at The Trails in New Caney as Castle Hill Partners Advances Community Buildout

Fidelis Realty Partners has broken ground on a retail shopping center at The Trails, a master-planned community in New Caney, Texas, as developer Castle Hill Partners pushes the project into a new phase of vertical construction across residential, retail and amenity components.

The retail center, called Trails at the Parkway, is situated at the community's Grand Parkway entrance. Fidelis also acquired an additional 11.6 acres for a separate retail and dining development called Trails Market, expanding the commercial footprint at that entrance.

Retail and Amenity Construction Underway

Construction on Trails at the Parkway marks the first commercial development inside The Trails. The site benefits from proximity to Grand Parkway and Plum Grove Road, two primary access corridors for residents and surrounding communities in the northeast Houston growth corridor.

Alongside the retail activity, construction has begun on a five-acre Amenity Campus that will include The Landing, an indoor venue featuring seating areas, a kitchenette and homeowners-association offices. The campus is designed to serve the community's growing residential base as new homes come online.

The Trails also added two new trail loops, bringing the community's total nature trail and undeveloped land to nearly 600 acres.

Builder Lineup Expands for Phase Two

Castle Hill Partners, the developer of The Trails, announced that First America Homes — the homebuilding arm of The Signorelli Company — is joining the community's second phase. First America will begin construction in fall 2026 and plans to debut a model home before year-end. The builder joins Chesmar Homes, Lennar and Westin Homes, which are already active in the second phase. The company said the second phase is fully committed to builders.

New homes at The Trails are currently being marketed from the upper $200,000s. Upon completion, the community is expected to include more than 2,000 homesites.

"Our second phase is fully committed to builders, new retail is taking shape at our entrance, new amenities are under construction and important infrastructure improvements are now complete," said Tiffany McMillan, vice president of asset management for Castle Hill Partners. "It all comes together to give today's homeowners what they're looking for — a choice of new homes at attainable prices, amenities and outdoor recreation, nearby retail conveniences and easy access to major employment centers."

Infrastructure Improvements Support Commercial Development

The commercial and residential expansion is supported by the recently completed widening of Plum Grove Road, which added one lane of traffic in each direction, a landscaped median and traffic signals at its intersection with Grand Parkway. The road improvements reduce a key access constraint as new homes and retail come online simultaneously.

The timing of Fidelis Realty Partners' retail construction reflects a pattern common to large master-planned communities: commercial development is advanced in step with residential absorption to serve a growing captive population while also drawing traffic from surrounding neighborhoods. The Trails' location along the Grand Parkway corridor, where developable land and highway access have supported continued master-planned-community growth in northeast Houston, positions both the retail and residential components to draw from a broad regional trade area.

Project Context and Market Position

The Trails includes nearly 600 acres of nature trails and undeveloped land. The community's entry pricing in the upper $200,000s positions it below many new-home developments closer to Houston's established employment centers, a factor that has contributed to demand along the Grand Parkway corridor.

Fidelis Realty Partners is a Houston-area retail developer and owner with activity across retail, multifamily, build-to-suit and industrial real estate. Trails at the Parkway and Trails Market represent the firm's commercial presence in the community. The separately acquired 11.6-acre Trails Market parcel gives Fidelis the ability to phase retail delivery as the residential base matures.

Sources

Fidelis Realty Partners — The Trails expands builder lineup, announces new retail, amenity additions