A development agreement and the creation of of public improvement district by Kyle City Council on Wednesday opened the door for a new mixed-use community just a few miles east of Kyle.
Pecan Woods, a project by Walton Development and Management (USA), Inc., would include single and multifamily residential units, as well as commercial and office development on a parcel of about 763 acres. Pecan Woods is partially located in Kyle’s extraterritorial jurisdiction, partly in the corporate limits.
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A PID typically involves a municipality or county issuing bonds to fund various aspects of development. According to the legislation that created PIDs, the funds can be used for many things, including building water and road infrastructure and creating parks as well as “special supplemental services for improvement and promotion of the district, including services relating to advertising, promotion, health and sanitation, water and wastewater, public safety, security, business recruitment, development, recreation and cultural enhancement.”
Under the PID agreement, Pecan Woods would not be annexed into the city for at least 20 years, a fact that made City Council members uneasy. A Walton representative said the type of community that’s being built at Pecan Woods could not be done without the support of a PID.
City Council ultimately approved the development agreement with Walton Group for Pecan Woods 5-2, with Council Member District 3 Shane Arabie and District 6 Council Member Daphne Tenorio voting against it.
During a subsequent discussion on the creation of a PID for Pecan Woods, Arabie brought up the idea of requiring the Walton Group to begin the bond process by 2018, saying that the city has “no teeth” in the current arrangement. But Tenorio said it could discourage businesses from coming to Kyle in the future.
“The development is market-driven,” Tenorio said. “Having an expiration date could drive away other developers and investors.”
Kyle City Council voted to create a PID 5-2 as well. Once again, Arabie and Tenorio voted nay.
Representatives from the Walton Group said there is no start date for the Pecan Woods project yet, but that design and construction will begin once they have “all their ducks in a row.”
This article originally appeared on Community Impact.
