West side story From the cover
The overview
League City’s undeveloped western area
Single-family residential
Mixed-use
Civic
Flex
Open spaces/parks Commercial
Planned roads
Industrial
Drainage/Detention
League City is close to formalizing a new master plan for its undeveloped west side. The plan, built by Houston-based LJA Engineering following a $175,000 contract approval in March 2024, has been in the works for around a year and has involved meetings with city officials and stakeholders to assess the city’s needs. In total, the undeveloped west side contains around 5,500 acres of land—roughly 4,300 of which is owned by a handful of developers, Director of Planning Kris Carpenter said. However, much of that owned land remains without a set plan, Executive Director of Development Services Christopher Sims said. As a result, city staff are calling for a bevy of options from commercial and mixed-use developments, as well as natural features and park space. The final plan, which will need two separate approvals by City Council in May, comes at a time when the city’s population is projected to increase by nearly 40% from 2020-2030. More growth could happen due to state plans to extend Grand Parkway through the city in 2027, per city and state documents.
528
E. BAY AREA BLVD.
Boundary of plan
W
MAGNOLIA BAYOU
MC FARLAND RD.
517
N
SOURCE: LEAGUE CITY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
Assessing the needs
Land usage of west side broken down
Land usage by acre
Type of land
2
Residential: 35.38% Residential 1
1,954.4
The new plan calls for a variety of features, including new districts that help create what Carpenter called “a sense of place” on the west side, as well new road networks, drainage features and a higher portion of land for commercial and industrial businesses, according to the plan’s breakdown. Within the plan are four new districts, according to city documents. They include: • The Gateway, which will welcome visitors with mixed properties, signage and artistic elements. • The Preserve , which will include parks and open spaces. • The Groves , which will highlight trees in the area and include different types of land. • The Quarry, which will include ponds, greenways, a new park and water-based activities. Meanwhile, investment in infrastructure will be key, as the city’s fiscal year 2025-2029 Capital Improvement Plan includes $785 million in investments citywide for the city’s streets, drainage, parks, water and municipal buildings, according to the plan.
1
Lakes/Detention
1,080.4
2
Constraints: 32.04%
Roadways Drainage Commercial Mixed-use
362.9 326.8 436.4 560.5
3
3
Total acres 5,524.7
4
5 6 7 8
4
Commercial/industrial 20.14%
Industrial
62.6 52.9
5
11
Flex
10
9
Parks
444.1 161.3
9 10 11
7
Community elements 12.45%
Open space
SOURCE: LEAGUE CITY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
Civics
82.4
land will go to commercial use. Sims said the city looked at how to incorporate more commercial land into the area to help take the tax burden off residents. He said much of that land will be concentrated along Grand Parkway, which acts as a natural spot to draw in business.
Expanding the city’s water and wastewater capac- ities to keep up with the anticipated 6.5 million gallons of water per day needed for the west side are part of the plan too, documents show. A higher portion of land will also go to commer- cial use, Carpenter and Sims said. Land for open space, roads and detention totals around 45% of the land. More than one-third of that remaining 55% of
12
COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM
Powered by FlippingBook