REDEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES Sugar Land has plans to launch several initiates to encourage residential and commercial growth.
Sugar Land City Council is considering a home revitalization program, where homeowners can receive grants to take on exterior home improvements.
Commercial facade improvement program
Reconsideration of multifamily housing code
Focus on increasing commercial density, such as with the Imperial Sugar Char House development
Deprioritizing “big box development,” or commercial property such as an office or a strip mall with a large parking lot in front that are space inefficient
SOURCE: SUGAR LAND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORP./COMMUNITY IMPACT
developments to be integrated into vertical mixed-use developments or as part of a larger activity center such as Sugar Land Town Square or Lake Pointe Town Center. Rodriguez said the city must follow the path to the highest taxable value for its land and preserve a strong qual- ity of life for its residents. “We have to look at intensifying cur- rent development,” she said. “This is the housing stock that has to meet the needs of existing residents and attract new residents.” It falls to the city then, to pursue redevelopment strategies that can improve the quality of life for new and existing residents. ‘A two-pronged approach’ The city can attract high-value busi- nesses if it can show them that resi- dents are interested in moving to and staying in the area, Rodriguez said. “We have a two-pronged approach of targeting both the commercial and residential aspects of living and work- ing in Sugar Land,” Rodriguez said. “It all comes together to financially sus- tain the community in the long term.” As such, the city is considering four key areas of redevelopment. The first is the preservation of the Imperial Historic District, which includes the Imperial Sugar Char House. PUMA Development announced in December it had an agreement with the city to develop the Char House and sur- rounding land. Plans for the multi-use development include offices, eateries, parks and multifamily housing. However, at a Jan. 24 meeting
about the project, residents spoke out against high-density housing as part of the Char House. “I don’t know if we necessarily need to put up apartments to support what’s going on at the Char House,” resident Mark McDonald said. Additionally, Lake Pointe Town Cen- ter, a shopping and park area located along Brooks Lake across from Hwy. 6 and Hwy. 59, is a growth opportunity for the city. Rodriguez said engineer- ing and construction company Fluor owns about 1 million square feet of the development, and surrounding areas are mostly filled in with commercial development and parking. “We’d like to explore what can be done with the surrounding area to make it more efficient,” she said. In general, Sugar Land discourages “big box development,” as it reduces a development’s walkability as well as commercial density, according to the city’s land use plan. To that end, the city is looking to re-evaluate how land is used at Lake Pointe Town Center. The Great Homes Program, which could inject new life into older neigh- borhoods, is slated for City Council discussion on Feb. 7. Rodriguez said another program could provide a financial incentive for exterior com- mercial facade improvements. With these programs in mind, Sugar Land officials said they hope to remain competitive in business and housing development in the future.
For more information, visit communityimpact.com .
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SUGAR LAND - MISSOURI CITY EDITION • FEBRUARY 2023
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