By Moses Leos III
Planning for future growth while maximizing economic development is an attribute Kyle city leaders want to bring into focus.
City Manager Scott Sellers believes making the best use of development can lead to Kyle reaching the “next level.”
Appropriate development is the next step in Kyle’s economic strategic planning process. With high growth, Sellers said new developments bring an “expectation” of residential and commercial requirements.
The city must begin to visualize the right mix, he said, for the city to control its future by using “intelligent planning today.”
The oversaturation of certain market types is the danger of not planning. Finding the right balance of commercial, residential and industrial development, is the goal.
Earlier this month, Jason Claunch, of Catalyst Commercial, and Scott Polikov, principal of Gateway Planning Group, presented such a plan – showing examples of high-growth cities that balanced development.
Included were areas between McKinney and Plano in the Dallas area, along with Schertz, located north of San Antonio.
Polikov said Kyle is currently at a “tipping point” when it comes to development.
The key, according to Polikov, is “working with adjacencies when discussing infrastructure capacity, tax base or planning efforts.”
He said Schertz balanced a large amount of industrially zoned property.
“Good, high quality development doesn’t just happen,” Polikov said. “Just because you’re on a high growth corridor, on a great location, or a great metro, doesn’t mean the property will be properly active.”
Mayor Todd Webster, who wants “great” development in the city, posed the question – how can the city keep the search for great, while not getting in the way of “anything at all?”
Polikov said talking with landowners and getting them to not see each other as competitors is important.
He said property owners don’t see themselves as developers, but as “value add sellers.” The common issue is that they are approached by single use development proposals.
Polikov said rarely are ideas of synergy brought up, or whether common resources extend across property lines.
Pinpointing land use decisions to estimate value on development is the focal point.
The bottom line, according to Polikov, is reversing leakage.
“People are driving through here with lots of money,” he said. “Are you going to capture that on a [more] competitive basis than the folks around you?”
For Sellers, broadening the base of Kyle’s economy is imperative.
Kyle currently has a limited amount of primary employers in manufacturing, logistics, trade and warehouse industries.
He believes finding the right fit could help Kyle bring outside dollars in, and keep the city’s economy stable, even during an economic downturn.
“The key is to broaden the economic base with as many uses as possible,” Sellers said. “With that type of local economy, we could withstand a downturn in any economic sector.”
