A planned mixed-use development in Southern Dallas is in the sweet 16 bracket competing for what could be a mile-long transit tunnel built by an Elon Musk-founded company.
University Hills is among 16 finalists in The Boring Co.’s Tunnel Vision Challenge, which invites public and private development entities to submit proposals for an up to one-mile-long, 12-foot-diameter tunnel, per a city of Dallas press release. The winning proposal will have its tunnel constructed free of charge.
The 16 finalists were pared down from 487 proposals.
Congrats to the Tunnel Vision Challenge Finalists!
— The Boring Company (@boringcompany) March 3, 2026
We received 487 entries and are down to the final 16. We'll announce the winner on March 23, and then build it free of charge.
Thank you to all the applicants! https://t.co/cY2ULfsHtc pic.twitter.com/Ny28Dsx4wL
If the proposal is selected, the University Hills tunnel would connect the University of North Texas Dallas DART Station to the development's commercial district, creating a direct transit link between the rail line and the mixed-use project, according to The Dallas Morning News.
University Hills is a planned $1B, 270-acre mixed-use community that is expected to have residential, commercial and green space components. Developer Hoque Global states the project is intended to “revitalize the area and foster economic growth,” according to its website.
Southern Dallas is an often-overlooked part of the Metroplex. In this area, industrial development has outpaced multifamily and office development for the last half-decade.
Hoque Global is one of a handful of developers that have undertaken plans for large-scale non-industrial development in the area. Another is Russell Glen Co., a local development company that plans to build a 90-acre master-planned community with several hundred multifamily units, 300 single-family homes and a 20-acre retail district.
TBC will announce the contest’s winner on March 23.
