CITY & COUNTY
Top city & county stories to watch in 2023
2023 ANNUAL COMMUNITY GUIDE
COMPILED BY CARSON GANONG
New plan calls for walkable downtown, more dense housing
Downtown project to bring several new amenities PFLUGERVILLE City o cials will approve nal design concepts in 2023 for amenities within Downtown East, a 29-acre development in downtown P ugerville. Downtown East in P ugerville is projected to cost the city $196.2 million. Here is how those expenses break down: COST OF THE DEVELOPMENT
OTHER STORIES TO FOLLOW IN 2023
PLANNING PRIORITIES Early in the comprehensive plan process, the city established its top eight priority areas to be detailed in the plan based on public feedback, including:
City of Hutto and developer work to revise agreement for The Co-Op MA Partners, the developer for The Co-Op District in Hutto, is working with the city to update their development agreement. The move comes after Hutto o cials in November voiced concerns with elements such as parking requirements and business hours. City Manager James Earp said he expects council to see an updated development agreement in early 2023. P ugerville weighs allocation of remaining ARPA funds The city of P ugerville has a $270,000 balance of American Rescue Plan Act funds following its implementation last year of a small-business grant program. On Nov. 29, P ugerville City Council discussed allocating the funds to local organizations ghting food insecurity. O cials have yet to reach a consensus on how to use the funds, and discussions will continue in early 2023. Deadlines to spend the funds fall between 2024 and 2026.
Transportation and mobility
Economic development
HUTTO After taking input from residents, o cials are almost ready to adopt the Hutto Soar 2040 compre- hensive plan, a document that will outline and guide the city’s growth priorities over the next 15-20 years. Hutto’s planning and zoning commission voted to recommend adoption of the plan in early January. City Council is scheduled to review a draft of the comprehensive plan in January before voting to adopt the plan in February. The Soar 2040 comprehensive plan includes sections on transportation, land use and economic development. It also contains a section dedicated speci cally to development in downtown Hutto. One major development priority laid out in the plan is an emphasis on walkable neighborhoods and trail connectivity for residents. Development Services Director
The mixed-use development will be home to a new City Hall and a 120,000-square-foot recreation center as well as a variety of other commercial and residential buildings. Plans developed thus far for Downtown East have been purely conceptual and indicate the development could include up to 130,000 square feet of retail, 120,000 square feet of commercial, 500 multifamily residential units and 75,000 square feet of hotel space. The city expects to select a master developer for the project in early 2023, after which it will be able to create a more nal design for the development. Downtown East has been in the works since late 2021, when the city purchased the 29-acre P uger Tract at the northwest corner of FM 685 and East Pecan Street. Since then, the city has held several public engagement events and approved a programming schedule for the development’s recreation center; four basketball courts and a multilane pool will be among the center’s features. The project o cially moved into the developer solicita- tion phase in July, and the city expects to select a master developer in January. More information on the Downtown East development and future opportunities for public input are available on the city’s website.
Ashley Bailey said the development of “10-minute neighborhoods,” where residents live near vital businesses and other amenities in walking distance, could reduce strain on Hutto’s roads along with planned transportation improvements. Another priority is the addition of more “missing middle” housing options, such as duplexes and townhomes, that provide more variety compared to apartments and single-family homes. The plan also lays out a concept that connects historic downtown Hutto and The Co-Op District through new roadways. Additionally, previously open space in historic downtown would be lled in with residential and commer- cial development. Proposed additions in the core of downtown include townhomes on Farley Street and an entertainment venue on the corner of
Cost:
Infrastructure
City services and facilities
$81.4M for new City Hall $78.8M for recreation center $27M for public parking $9M for public infrastructure
Growth and land use
Urban design and character
$196.2 M
Parks and open space
Housing and neighborhoods
SOURCE: CITY OF HUTTO COMMUNITY IMPACT
Funding sources:
East Street and Hwy. 79. The plan also includes projected growth numbers for the city; accord- ing to the draft plan, Hutto’s popula- tion is expected to grow to just over 80,000 by 2045. The process of drafting the plan began in August 2021. Since then, the city has convened an advisory committee to help guide the creation of the plan and has held numerous events collecting public input. The city also brought on planning and consulting rm Freese and Nichols to coordinate the creation of the plan. Freese and Nichols
representative Chance Sparks said the feedback collected during public input events has helped the rm and the city get a better understanding of what citizens’ priorities are. “Survey participation hasn’t been super strong, but what we’ve gotten has been very intense,” Sparks said. “The emphasis [in public feedback] is on getting your basics right— transportation, mobility, infrastruc- ture and addressing growth in a way that’s close to your core functions.” More information on the plan, including a preliminary draft, is available on the city’s website.
$77.1M from tax increment reinvestment zone, other sources $71.8M from tax-supported debt $47.3M from 2020 parks bond
$196.2 M
HERITAGE LOOP TRAIL
685
DOWNTOWN EAST
N
DESSAU RD.
SOURCE: CITY OF PFLUGERVILLE COMMUNITY IMPACT
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