The Pilot Point City Council approved Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone No. 14 during its Sept. 25 meeting, despite concerns from some members about its location and impact on city services.
The zone is set for a 30-year term with 50% city participation, mirroring past TIRZ agreements.
TIRZ is a type of property used for infrastructure and economic development, including road, water, sewer and drainage projects, all funded by the increase in property values within that zone.
“From a negotiation standpoint, with these developers, if we set them at 50% there's no room to move,”Mayor Pro Tem Andrew Ambrosio stated.
However, City Manager Britt Lusk said, setting TIRZs at 50% does not guarantee they will remain there.
“If they're not in the city limits, we don't get the sales tax,” Lusk said. “Currently, the sales tax buys down property tax.”
Also at the meeting, the council unanimously approved the development agreement with Red Gable Construction Company for developing 89 lots and rezoning 28.296 acres.
The project includes widening the street as well as improving sidewalks and drainage to Yarbrough Street.
“There's a lot of improvements that we would like to make to Yarbrough Street, so we would like to make this change to be able to have those fees that would have gone to water and sewer impact fees to be able to be spent on roads,” Development Services Director John Taylor said.
A public hearing was held to discuss those topics.
Resident Katie Scott spoke candidly and expressed admiration for the Promise Plan, along with reluctance for the city's future development.
_ “I worry that Pilot Point is on its way to becoming a case study 15 to 20 years from now of what's going to happen when the state overcorrects, got it wrong, and we're not innovative or brave enough to use the few tools we have to bring that vision to life,” she said.
Although the developments have the type of material quality the residents want, she said, there are more and more high-density housing developments cropping up. _ “And this keeps happening time after time after time, even though we all are saying we're tired of 30 and 40-foot lots,” Scott said. “What about the green spaces, the parks, and the open areas that the citizens overwhelmingly said were their top priority in that plan?”
Scott concluded her comments by encouraging city council members to find alternative solutions to address the financial needs of the community.
Another Pilot Point resident, Justin Cook, also took the opportunity to speak.
“From what I understood from the planning and zoning, the way they presented it, you know, everything's custom homes,” he said. “It's not like they're just slapping houses in, and then you buy it.”
Also at the meeting, in a vote of 6-1 with council member Mike Wilson dissenting, city council members agreed to work with Walsh Construction Company, the parent company of Archer Western, with Archer Western named the Construction Manager at Risk Service for the wastewater treatment plant project. _ The projected total cost is set at $64.5 million.
As for funding, the city was approved by the Texas Water Development Board to transfer funds to the Construction Manager-at-Risk.
However, the funding wasn’t enough, Assistant City Manager and CFO Michele Sanchez said.
“We did not bond enough for this total cost of this project, so as we get the bids in for the trade, we will have to issue additional debt for this project,” she said. _ The solution is to complete this project using Certifi cate of Obligation revenue bonds by early next year to try to avoid an increase in utility rates.
During public comments, Kate Major read a message for regular attendee Cindy Faris in her absence about the money raised for Meals on Wheels during Chrome Fest._ “The money raised will provide approximately 317 meals feeding a senior for one year and three months, but it also gives us the opportunity to do a wellness check and bring socialization into the senior's home for 317 days,” she read.
Faris thanked Pastor Dwayne Edwards of the Grace Point Nazarene Church for “his leadership.”_ She also thanked “the committee, and all the volunteers who made this donation possible, and to those gorgeous vehicles and their owners for participating in making this a successful festival.”
