Nearly a decade has passed since plans first were laid out for Preston Hollow Village, the high-end development near the corner of Walnut Hill and North Central Expressway.

Now, the current developer Provident Realty Advisors in the midst of the project’s second phase.

Plans to construct Preston Hollow Village first came about in 2007 after the low-income, 800-unit Willow Creek apartment complex was torn down.  Construction plans came to a screeching halt during the recession, and the first phase of the development wasn’t complete until 2014, seven years after its inception.

Now Provident Realty Advisors is preparing to construct a 1,200-unit residential development with townhomes and apartments, a 3,000-square-foot retail and boutique office space and a 3-acre park. The company recently applied for rezoning to increase the number of units and buildings’ height.

On Tuesday, Provident Realty Advisors held an informational meeting with Councilman Lee Kleinman and plan commissioner Jaynie Schultz to discuss the development’s next stages and address neighbors’ laundry list of concerns. Nearly 60 residents of Windsor Park, East Meadows, Paradiso and nearby neighborhoods attended the meeting, despite their complaints that it coincided with Election Day.

During the meeting, Briarmeadow resident Gus Owen said he was “appalled” with the meeting’s time.

“I think there is a national election going on, and one of the big things about the national election is the lack of response from the elected officials and the civil service people, which is whatever might be on the city here,” he said.

It’s no surprise increased traffic was among neighbors’ top complaints. There are five proposed  exits to the residential development, and many residents were worried about traffic jams with additional residents, customers and vehicles coming to the area.

Jerry Jackson, of Provident Realty Advisors, said that a traffic engineering study was conducted and reviewed by the City of Dallas.  He said the study showed one of the exits would only have 41 additional cars enter and exit the community throughout any given day.

“This is a community where people will live, they’ll work, they’ll play,” Jackson said. “Part of our strategy is to not generate traffic. Part of our strategy is to generate an environment where people don’t drive.”

But several residents didn’t buy in to his point and requested that Provident reconsider its plan.

“I question if you really take a serious look at the traffic flow, because we dine here in this shopping center,” Owen said. “I shop at Trader Joe’s quite often, and I see the traffic. When I see the condos and apartments, I really question the traffic study as such and how it’s going to impact the neighborhood.”

Kleinman said the issue is a “double-edged sword,” and there are several benefits to Preston Hollow Village’s expansion.

“If there’s one frustration in this city, it’s traffic.”