Building A Place of Hope: Valley View Village Takes Shape in the Highland Lakes
The Ark of the Highland Lakes is expanding its mission through a 211 acre development - Valley View Village - just outside Marble Falls, Texas, providing a safe haven for individuals and families experiencing crises.
Lauren Concrete has delivered concrete to help build this new community, which is set to open its doors before the end of the year.
The Ark of the Highland Lakes was born in the aftermath of the devastating 2018 Highland Lakes floods, when local churches, volunteers and community members joined forces to help hundreds of families facing disaster. Originally known as the Highland Lakes Crisis Network, the organization has since grown from disaster response into a year-round network dedicated to serving individuals and families throughout the region.
Today, the Ark brings community partners together to address both immediate and long-term needs. Its work spans disaster response and recovery, food and material assistance, dental care, foster and adoptive family support, transitional housing and other resources designed to help people move beyond an immediate crisis toward long-term stability.
From Crisis to Transformation
Valley View Village provides a “community of restoration” designed to care for spiritual, physical, emotional and financial needs through a whole-person approach.
The vision goes far beyond providing temporary assistance. Valley View will meet people wherever they are in their journey, from those seeking immediate safety to individuals and families ready to take the next steps toward long-term independence. Through safe housing, supportive relationships, practical resources, opportunities to develop new skills and a Christ-centered community, the Village will provide a place where people can begin rebuilding their lives.
Across the property, that vision is already taking shape.
A greenhouse and garden, meat processing center and workshop have been completed, while construction continues on several other key pieces of the campus.
Future plans include a Welcome Center, warehouse and skills lab, mercantile, sports fields, bath house and laundry facility, clinic, childcare center, farm, barn, RV living spaces and a fishing pond.
Lauren Concrete is proud to have placed concrete for several of the structures, including El Centro, the Chapel and Amphitheater, Triage Housing and long-term Transformational Living cabins.
"We are proud to serve beside great community partners like Lauren Concrete,” said Kevin Naumann, Executive Director of the Ark of the Highland Lakes. “The foundations we are pouring together will have positive ripples for generations to come."
El Centro: At the Heart of Valley View
At the center of the Village will be the aptly named El Centro, a 15,000-square-foot multi-purpose facility that will serve as the future home of The Ark's offices at Valley View.
Designed to provide oversight and support for the programs and activities taking place throughout the campus, El Centro will serve as an operational anchor for the Village. But its purpose extends well beyond office space.
The facility is also being designed as a premier community event center, providing a welcoming place for weddings, celebrations, community gatherings and other special events. It will create another opportunity for Valley View to serve not only its residents, but neighbors throughout the Highland Lakes.
Lauren Concrete provided ready-mix concrete for El Centro, helping lay the foundation for a space that will eventually connect many of the people, programs and partnerships that make Valley View possible.
A Safe First Step
For someone experiencing abuse or another life-altering crisis, rebuilding may begin with something as fundamental as having a safe place to sleep.
Seven Triage Housing pods are being built to provide that first step. Lauren Concrete provided the concrete footings for these structures, which will offer an initial safe place for victims of abuse entering the program.
Residents will be able to stay for approximately 30 days while their individual circumstances and needs are evaluated and a long-term plan is developed. For those who continue into Valley View's Transformational Living program, long-term cabins are available.
A Foundation for Long-Term Transformation
Lauren Concrete has also provided concrete for the long-term cabin pods being constructed as part of the Ark's Transformational Living program.
There are seven thoughtfully designed two-bedroom, one-bath cabin pods, giving residents safe and stable housing as they work toward lasting independence.
The concept is about more than putting a roof over someone's head. This community is intentionally designed to balance independence with connection, surrounding residents with neighbors and a support system as they navigate practical challenges, personal growth and the transition from crisis toward self-sufficiency.
Together, the Triage and Transformational Living cabins create a meaningful progression. One offers a place to land safely in the immediate aftermath of crisis. The other provides the stability, time and community needed to begin building what comes next.
A Place for Reflection and Connection
Spiritual restoration is another central part of the Ark's vision for Valley View Village, and the Chapel and Amphitheater will provide a dedicated space for it.
Lauren Concrete provided concrete for the Chapel and Amphitheater, which are being created as peaceful, welcoming spaces for prayer, reflection, worship and connection.
Open to Valley View residents as well as the broader community, the Chapel will provide a quiet setting where people can slow down, gather and grow in their faith. It will also host weddings, devotionals, prayer gatherings and other meaningful ceremonies and services.
Together with the outdoor Amphitheater, the space will add another dimension to the Village of faith and community.
Beyond the Buildings
Taken individually, each structure at Valley View Village serves a different purpose. Together, they begin to tell a much bigger story.
"Valley View will be a place of peace; a place where families will know they are loved, build a stable life, and strengthen the next generation,” Naumann said. “This village is a testimony to what happens when the Church becomes visible in love and united in action — neighbors serving neighbors, pastors linking arms with leaders, and ordinary people offering their time, resources, and gifts to make refuge real.”
And the vision is still growing.
Future phases will add resources ranging from healthcare and childcare to job training, recreation, agriculture and additional living spaces,
Valley View Village is being intentionally built to support people through multiple stages of their journey.
For Lauren Concrete, projects like Valley View are a reminder that what we help build is ultimately about the people who will use those spaces. The concrete being poured today will support places where someone may find safety during one of the most difficult moments of their life, where a family can begin again, where neighbors can gather, and where people can find the resources and community they need to move forward.
We are honored to play a small role alongside the Ark of the Highland Lakes and the many organizations, volunteers and community members bringing Valley View Village to life.
