What's happening
Although the plan is still "very conceptual," the potential light industrial project would fit in with the surrounding developments, said Amanda Brown, a representative with HD Brown Consulting. The Chandler Road development resides in Jonah's water network and Round Rock's wastewater out-of-city service area.
"There is a portion of Round Rock's ETJ that creeps over onto the east side of 130, kind of on the Hutto side," Brown said at the meeting.
Because the site is over 17,000 feet away from Round Rock's existing wastewater infrastructure, the developer would need to construct a new lift station as well as fund $10 million of required improvements. As an alternative, the team presented the project to Hutto City Council to request to tie into Hutto's wastewater infrastructure.
City staff previously approved a service extension request for necessary improvements to connect to the wastewater line a little over 7,000 feet away from the site. If Hutto City Council chooses to vote against the project, the team plans to utilize a package plant, Brown said.
What they're saying
City Engineer Matt Rector said that staff had previously tried to approach the city of Round Rock to do an ETJ swap.
"Because we got stuff on the west side of 130, they got stuff on the east side of 130," Rector said. "I don't know if this would be a potential way for us to reinvestigate those conversations."
Mayor Pro Tem Peter Gordon also showed support for finding an agreement with Round Rock; however, Mayor Mike Snyder voiced that he isn't "a big fan of swapping ETJs or swapping territory." Snyder instead suggested that the developer make a plan for an out-of-city service agreement with Hutto city staff.
In case you missed it
Brown also requested city water services at the same meeting on behalf of another development, a proposed mixed-use site dubbed Legacy Park. In February, Capland Development approached City Council to request annexation into the city for both water and wastewater services for the proposed Gateway at Hutto.
What's next
Council did not take action on the presentation, and the development team plans to return with an updated proposal.
