Grand Parkway Town CenterUpdated May 11 Tomball City Council approved the strategic partnership agreement with Harris County MUD No. 273 after holding a second public hearing at city hall on May 6. No residents signed up to speak during the meeting and the agreement was approved unanimously. Council member Chad Degges was not present for the vote. City Council will hold two additional public hearings at City Hall before the 153-acre tract can be officially annexed. After two public hearings held May 9 and May 11, council voted to add the 153-acre tract into city limits as part of a limited purpose annexation. Posted May 6 at 11:30 a.m. CST During its May 4 meeting, Tomball City Council held the first of two required public hearings to enter into a strategic partnership agreement with Harris County Municipal Utility District No. 273 for limited purpose annexation. The city plans to annex 153 acres within the MUD, which is located at the southwest corner of Hwy. 249 and the Grand Parkway. MUD 273 is located within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the city of Tomball but has not been incorporated into city limits. Last November the city approved a development agreement with MUD 273 and A-K Venture Capital for the 153-acre tract. NewQuest Properties plans to develop a 63-acre Grand Parkway Town Center on the tract that will feature 187,010 square feet of retail space and 143,974 square feet of office buildings. The town center will include membership-based retailer Sam’s Club, another major grocer, a junior anchor store and 15 restaurant and retail pad sites. Sam’s Club and some of the other stores could open in early 2016. The limited purpose annexation will allow the city to collect 2 cents of sales tax revenue from any businesses developed there, according to the agreement signed with MUD 273 officials. In exchange for the sales tax revenue, the city will provide water and sewer utilities to the site. During the May 4 meeting, no residents signed up to speak about the strategic partnership agreement and limited purpose annexation. The second required public hearing will be held on May 6 at Tomball City Hall at 5:30 p.m. After the hearing, City Council is expected to take action on the agreement