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Converse council and EDC approve next phase of arts and entertainment district planning
Summary
After community workshops and online surveys, the city’s Economic Development Corporation presented conceptual plans for an arts-and-entertainment district; council approved moving the project into more detailed planning and feasibility work using EDC funds already budgeted.
The City of Converse on May 6 voted to advance planning for a proposed arts and entertainment district near the intersection of Topperwine Road and FM 1976, directing the Economic Development Corporation (EDC) to continue community outreach and undertake a master-plan and market-feasibility phase.
The EDC and its consultant, Gensler, summarized months of public engagement and recommended a master plan, regulatory review and a phased implementation strategy. "The community really is wanting to see food, shopping and music within your, within this arts and entertainment district," Gensler said during the presentation, citing workshop and survey results.
Councilman Lon Ballinder, Economic Development Corporation executive director, told the council the EDC has already budgeted funds for next steps and asked for direction to proceed. Gensler presented guiding principles distilled from workshops — "active, fun, affordable, accessible" — and conceptual subzones that could be built incrementally.
EDC staff and consultants emphasized the work remains in a planning phase: they recommended a formal master plan, a market and feasibility study, further regulatory analysis to identify any policy changes that would spur the district, and outreach to private developers. Ballinder told the council the area under discussion is far larger than the parcels the EDC currently owns and that a full development would likely take many years.
Council members praised the outreach and asked how to increase participation after about 50 survey respondents and roughly 30 workshop attendees. Gensler said outreach included a community mailer paid for by the EDC — "the EDC spent about $7,000 in mailing a postcard to every household in the city" — plus social media boosts and in-person invitations.
The council voted to "move forward as presented" with the planning work; the motion passed. City and EDC officials said further contracts and expenditures would be reviewed by the EDC board and reported regularly to city council.
Next steps identified by staff include a full master plan, an in-depth market-feasibility study, regulatory and implementation strategies, and continued community engagement and placemaking work to establish district character before significant private investment.
The presentation and vote conclude the initial, publicly noticed phase of engagement; any construction or land-acquisition spending would require subsequent approvals by the EDC and, where required, by the city council.
