By Andy Sevilla
After Buda voters green lighted $55 million in capital improvement projects in November, city leaders purchased 8.6 acres of land at year’s end to house a new city hall, library and police station.
The recently acquired property sits along Main Street and was part of the 25 acres owned by Jardines Foods. The city’s portion of the tract fronts Main Street and was purchased for $1.7 million.
“I’m extremely pleased,” Buda Mayor Todd Ruge said in a telephone interview. “Not only the bond committee, but the council as a whole, we felt it very important to keep a Main Street address.”
The council gave the city manager the go-ahead to negotiate and execute a contract for the land acquisition after voters approved five bond propositions totaling $55 million for capital improvement projects in the November general election.
Of the five propositions, Proposition 1 totaled $21 million and is to be used for a municipal facility to house a library, municipal court, city hall and community multi-purpose room and emergency preparedness space.
Proposition 2 set aside $6.75 million for a public safety facility to house the police department and related emergency and training facilities.
Council has said the municipal facility and the public safety facility should go on the same property, and with the newly acquired 8.6 acres, Ruge said that could be accomplished.
“The amount of land purchased gives the city the ability to have two separate facilities (police station & City Hall/Library) on this one tract while being mindful that the police station will require different security measures than our new city hall/library,” Ruge said in a statement.
Ruge said Jardines Foods will continue to operate out of its remaining 16 acres of land abutting the now-owned city property, and the longhorns that presently roam in the city’s land will be moved to a different section of the Jardines’ tract.
Officials looked at different property sites throughout the city, from the east side to FM 1626 and FM 967, Ruge said. Ultimately, officials approached Jardines CEO Robert McGee and negotiated a deal to acquire the property.
At $1.7 million for the 8.6 acres (374,710 square feet), the city purchased the land at about $4.54 per square-foot.
Ruge said the city paid for the property in full on Dec. 31 out of the city’s coffers that would be reimbursed once council approves issuance of the bond money.
Council members have expressed an interest in splitting the $55 million bond into two different issuances, with the first issuance likely to cover the municipal facility and public safety facility construction.
Other voter-approved capital improvement projects would fix city roads, drainage and parks and trails.
