On April 9, Williamson County commissioners and Georgetown City Council members discussed four amendments to an agreement regarding the development of a conference center at The Summit at Rivery Park.

Commissioners approved the amendments while City Council acknowledged the changes to the agreement between Williamson County and Georgetown in regard to the conference center.

Amendments include ensuring 16,000 square feet of ballroom space, fine-tuning terms of the county's use of the space once completed, re-adding 8.33 acres of land to the Brownstone development that had been removed from the area in 2010 and extending the time period of the tax increment revenue zone, or TIRZ, from Dec. 31, 2031, to Dec. 31, 2041.

The time extension was included to give the city and county 10 more years to collect money in a TIRZ fund, which will help to pay back the developers of the project.

Novak Brothers Development, along with other developers, will fund the initial building of the conference center at The Summit, located on Rivery Boulevard in Georgetown. The city will then pay them back over time by selling bonds.

"We are going to take the value of the TIRZ, and when things get built on it—the Brownstones, the hotel, the conference center, apartments—that increased appraised value gets taxed. That goes into the bucket to reimburse for the conference center," Precinct 3 Commissioner Valerie Covey said.

Discussion during the commissioners meeting April 9 revealed the court was concerned about the regional appeal of the conference center, which will be built as a unit with the Sheraton Hotel.

"If it's going to be smaller than a regional center, I'm not sure I want to be involved," Precinct 3 Commissioner Lisa Birkman said. "I want to know what kind of groups would be attracted to this."

Mel Pendland, president of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce, spoke about the usefulness of a conference center in the city, saying current plans for the center would make it comparable to other venues in Austin.

"It's important to think of the scope of this project in terms of population. We're already a large county, and we're going to get larger," he said. "We certainly have the opportunity to attract statewide groups. Our proximity to Fort Hood means we have many former military in the area who host reunion events. Law enforcement annually has large gatherings, and it gives an alternative space to Austin (events)."

The agreement is scheduled to be drafted and presented at the April 23 commissioners court meeting, Covey said.