Nolina - Nolina | Our Story

Our Once Upon A Time

The story of Nolina began on a clear, slightly chilly day in December when members of the Johnson Development team and several of their partners pulled on coats and serviceable shoes and headed out to a yet unnamed 540-acre stretch of land destined to become the newest Austin-area community in the Johnson Development portfolio.

The group hiked the land, taking in the views and noticing the abundance of native plants — one of which, the Texas beargrass otherwise known as Nolina, that would give the community its name.

The quiet of the land, broken only by an occasion songbird and swish of wind, captivated the team, and they imagined what it might be to live in such surroundings. It was then that they became determined to capture this moment in time and create a community that is a fresh breath of “away from it all” — without really being too far away.

Seems like a hard task, but luckily, one that falls into the very capable hands of Johnson Development Services, an affiliate of Johnson Development Corp., one of the nation’s leading developers of master-planned communities. Johnson Development Services formed in 2012 and has since worked with homebuilders and landowners across Texas to help develop a number of successful communities. Amira, Candela, Grand Vista and other JDS communities are thriving in the greater Houston area, and in San Antonio, Johnson Development Services is developing Cinco Lakes, Davis Ranch, Winding Brook and others. Nolina is its first Austin-area development.

Nolina isn’t the first Austin-area community for Johnson Development Corp., however. In 2019, the company purchased Bryson in Leander and has overseen its development as it has gone on to win “Community of the Year” five times. Bryson is now nearing close-out, with fewer than 100 new-home opportunities remaining in fall 2023.

Johnson Development Corp. launched in 1975 and has since set the standard for master-planned community development, influencing communities across the country with a focus on lifestyle. In 2023, Johnson Development had more top-selling master-planned communities over the past decade than any other developer in the nation.

It is the spirit and skill of Johnson Development that will be the force behind Nolina as it develops into a community like no other.