By Moses Leos III
A trio of development agreements approved by the Kyle City Council in early May not only increased the city’s size by ten square miles, but could pave the way for extensive development.
The city worked with property owners to annex approximately 6,000 acres on the southwest side of Kyle; the agreements were all approved by 7-0 votes. Property owners included Miriam McCoy, Robert Scott Nance and Joel and Jason Bradshaw.
Additionally, the city worked with Blanco River Ranch Properties, LLC and Blanco River Investments on the agreements.
Within each agreement were development standards that called for large-scale residential and commercial aspects. Kyle City Manager Scott Sellers said the agreements also call for “natural areas” that should be “environmentally friendly despite the density.”
“We hope the quality of development can match the hill country setting, to match the character it’s located in,” Sellers said.
According to Sellers, discussions on annexing the land began in 2015 when Hays County tabbed Corridor C as its preferred alternative for the FM 150 realignment project.
After meetings with Hays County and the city, Sellers said the property owners approached Kyle with the “strategic catalyst of development at some point.”
Sellers said the annexation process was done to “preserve and protect the development of the area” and ensure “higher development standards.”
But he also said reaching the agreements required a high level of complexity, including balancing the needs of the property owners with the needs of the citizens at large.
“We had to put together an agreement that was fair to both sides and strategically advantageous to the city in the long run,” Seller said.
One aspect, Sellers said, was offering incentives to the property owners. That included Chapter 380 sales tax and property tax rebates. Sellers said a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ) would be created on the Nance property that would go toward helping fund a bridge to extend Cypress Road over the Blanco River.
Another was to make future development pay for some of the debt obligations for existing infrastructure needs, Sellers said.
Sellers referred to the city staff’s amendment of the Public Improvement District (PID) policy to allow for an out-of-city “reverse PID” in the Blanco River Ranch subdivision.
The purpose of a PID is to collect assessments from properties that go toward funding infrastructure improvements within the PID.
With a reverse PID, up to 10 percent of the PID bond would go toward funding PID related expenses outside of the PID.
Sellers said the reverse PID could offset debt service the city would have to provide otherwise. While the Nance and McCoy properties will have PIDs, Sellers said their densities should offset the cost of infrastructure.
What could be the results of the agreements? Possibly an influx of commercial and residential development.
That includes the Blanco River Ranch property, which has set aside roughly 300 acres for a future corporate campus, along with 1.05 million square feet of commercial space.
In addition, Sellers said the city is anticipating a “destination resort” on the property.
He said Blanco River Ranch has been talking with prospects for a possible hotel. According to Sellers, the move could open up the Blanco River area for recreational and commercial use.
He said it’s a large part of the city’s desire to find a “destination appeal.”
“Kyle has never had that opportunity (to use the Blanco River) until now,” Sellers said.
While there is an influx of growth on the horizon, Sellers said the city is “putting together” plans to identify funds from the reverse PID to improve water and wastewater service.
While he said the city wouldn’t be able to serve the coming growth today, the long term developments have “multiple bond issues” that could pay for servicing the area.
Sellers said he anticipates a time frame of 30 to 40 years for build out.
“It’s imperative that we have a long term plan to address these infrastructure needs today, inclusive of these developments,” Seller said.
