The sign for the Crushtex rock crushing operation on McGuffin Way in east Fort Worth on Jan. 5, 2026. The site is operating without a city permit while an application is pending. Residents in the area want the city to deny that request, and they want the rock crushing to stop.
Residents of east Fort Worth have mobilized to shut down a rock crushing operation near the West Fork of the Trinity River that is operating without a zoning permit. At the same time, they are asking the city to reject a request to rezone the site and surrounding property for further industrial use.
In July, Crushtex, LLC, received a building permit from the city for a temporary construction trailer at 153 McGuffin Way, a property owned by Wallace Hall Jr. A Facebook page for Crushtex created in October says the company provides commercial flex base, which is used in road construction.
Hall, however, did not receive a conditional use permit for the rock crushing operation, which is required since the property is zoned only for commercial, not industrial, use. Hall did not immediately respond to a phone message and email requesting comment.
In 2016, Hall, a businessman and a former University of Texas System regent, attempted to open a concrete recycling plant in the same area. Opposition from residents and city officials ultimately halted those plans.
On Jan. 5, the operation was running, with at least one front-end loader on site to load crushed rock into trucks. The rock crusher itself appeared to be a mobile unit, not a permanent one. It was situated next to a sizable rock pile.
Linda Fulmer with the Neighborhoods of East Fort Worth Alliance said residents noticed the rock crushing operation on McGuffin Way in early November and alerted the city. According to permit records, the city notified Crushtex on Nov. 17 that rock crushing and concrete batch operations were not allowed, per zoning, and that a conditional use permit was needed.
Fulmer’s residential alliance wants the rock crushing to stop because of concerns about air quality and increased truck traffic.
On Dec. 8, Hall requested a conditional use permit for the concrete crushing operation, according to Fort Worth permit records. That was part of a larger request to the city to rezone nearly 50 acres between East First Street and Elliott Reeder Road, which includes the McGuffin Way property, for light industrial use. According to a city spokesperson, the rock crushing operations have been allowed to continue on the site while the permit and rezoning requests are pending.
John Grisham, from Athens, is the registered owner of Crushtex. He said the McGuffin Way site has been operating “off and on,” though he said he wasn’t sure of the exact date it went live. When asked about the conditional use permit, Grisham said that was something the property owner, Hall, is handling. Grisham said he had a Texas Commission on Environmental Quality permit, and that’s what he abides by.
According to TCEQ records, Crushtex obtained an air quality permit for the concrete crushing operation that has been active since Dec. 5.
Based on the site plan included with the conditional use permit application, the rock crushing operation will move farther east over time. Fulmer said she believes Hall is crushing rock that was brought in years ago to raise the property out of a floodplain.
In addition to opposing the rock crushing operations, Fulmer and her residential alliance don’t want Hall’s land rezoned for increased industrial use, fearing the environmental impact to the nearby Trinity River and Gateway Park. The property under consideration is zoned for multifamily residential and commercial use, but only for things like retail stores, restaurants, hotels, office complexes and gas stations.
Fulmer outlined reasons for opposing Hall’s rezoning request on the West Meadowbrook Neighborhood Association’s website. The West Meadowbrook Neighborhood Association is one of the groups comprising the Neighborhoods of East Fort Worth Alliance.
The zoning commission hearing for Hall’s request is tentatively scheduled for Feb. 11, according to a city spokesperson.
Fulmer hopes Hall’s requests will be denied, but she said she’s not sure residents were given enough notice ahead of the rezoning hearing to sway the city’s decision makers.
Matthew Adams
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