Three Cedar Park Town Center restaurants opened in late March and early April, bringing a wave of new dining options.

A portion of the sales tax collected at these and other retailers will go to the city and contribute to a rising trend: Cedar Park and Leander saw record-setting sales tax collections in December, a sign that the cities' swelling populations are spending more money locally, according to data from the state comptroller's office.

The data released in February included a full month of sales tax collected at the new Costco store in Cedar Park, though individual retailer tax payments are confidential. The city of Cedar Park received more than $2.1 million in sales taxes in December, almost 14 percent more than the same month in 2012. In Leander, the city collected 19 percent more in sales taxes in December 2013 compared with December 2012, according to the state comptroller's office.

The tax figures are exciting but not necessarily surprising to Cedar Park officials who aim to recruit retail as well as primary employers, Economic Development Director Phil Brewer said.

"The retail component [in Cedar Park] continues to be strong, and our demographics are still positive and very attractive to retailers and restaurants," he said.

Retail availability

In-N-Out Burger, VERTS and Zos Kitchen opened at Cedar Park Town Center on the heels of Costco's opening at the end of November. Much of the sales-tax-earning retail space in the development was pre-leased—a common practice in the area, Retail Solutions principal Alan Rust said.

"Several years ago it was a story of oversupply, and now that has really been reined in," Rust said. "The new construction along FM 1431 near the 1890 Ranch [Shopping Center], a lot of that was pre-leased. Developers have very low-risk thresholds these days, as they should, so they weren't yielding a lot of new supply to the market."

Low vacancy means the market can be competitive for incoming businesses, Rust said. Some smaller companies, however, cannot afford to buy vacant land or move into brand-new space.

"We have heard complaints about the cost of well-positioned land, that the asking price is a challenge," Rust said. "A lot of times, users need a lower price point than new construction can provide."

Sources of new sales tax

An expanding retail footprint is only one way to collect new sales tax, Leander Finance Director Robert Powers said. In Leander, where commercial development is less active compared with Cedar Park, the city finds some sales tax collections are spurred by population growth.

"When we talk about sales tax, a lot of us think about retail, but a significant portion of our sales tax is from your electric bill, your gas bill, your phone bill, your trash bill and your cable bill," Powers said. "So even if you're not spending more each month, just the sheer number of accounts is growing. And in Leander, that's significant."

When the city annexes businesses that sell taxable food or merchandise, it collects new sales tax. But another source of sales taxes growth in Leander has come from online sales, Powers said.

"If a Leander resident [shops on] Amazon and it's a taxable transaction, we will get that piece," he said. "It's the same with any other online retailer that's paying sales tax in Texas. ... Each entity gets its share."

Future growth

Sales tax numbers in Cedar Park and Leander peaked in December, but the overall growth trend is positive, Powers said. Existing stores such as those in the Gateway Leander shopping center on US 183 remain steady sales taxpayers. Retailers at the Shops at Crystal Falls in Leander are expected to begin opening in summer, and several hundred acres throughout the city are primed for development.

Brewer said a few vacant commercial buildings remain in Cedar Park while several pad sites in the city call for mixed-use development including retail. Sites such as Indigo Ridge on Whitestone Boulevard east of Parmer Lane and about 45 acres north of Costco on Toll 183A are expected to bring more opportunities for sales tax growth, he said.

The city of Cedar Park launched a campaign in August that encourages residents to shop locally so sales tax dollars remain in Cedar Park.

Jennie Huerta, city of Cedar Park media and communications manager, said the increased sales tax numbers cannot be attributed solely to the campaign, but "Got It In Cedar Park" stickers on the windows and doors of Cedar Park businesses help the effort.

"Our challenge was to educate consumers as to what is and is not located in our city limits, to help them easily identify businesses located in Cedar Park and understand why shopping at these businesses, shopping locally, really matters," she said. "We do know that the marketing goes hand-in-hand with the new shopping and dining opportunities coming online, and so we have to continue this campaign. We want to remind people to make sure they got it in Cedar Park—whatever it is."