Staff outlines Imperial Redevelopment Project acquisition plan, $50 million CO proposal and next steps

Redevelopment staff presented a workshop on the Imperial Redevelopment Project and outlined the city’s planned steps to pursue acquisition of the Imperial Historic District, stabilize the Char House, develop a market‑supported implementation plan, and select a master developer to complete long‑term redevelopment.

Staff said the Imperial site has been a city priority for two decades and that multiple private developer attempts failed to deliver a complete redevelopment. The presentation described staff visits to comparable projects (the Bell District in Cedar Park and the Mueller development in Austin) to draw lessons on land assembly, city roles, master‑developer partnerships and the need for adaptable design and interim activations.

Key recommended actions included acquiring the land parcels in the historic district, assembling a team of consultants and specialists, stabilizing the Char House (a historic building on the site), producing a market‑supported vision and implementation plan, creating interim activations to maintain momentum, and selecting a master developer to implement the community vision.

On financing, staff presented a certificate of obligation with a $50,000,000 ceiling to cover acquisition, Char House rehabilitation and initial capital costs. Staff displayed a 20‑year cash‑capacity chart that combined 4A and 4B corporation resources and hotel occupancy tax receipts; the chart showed the CO debt service as one component of projected capacity and indicated staff’s view that capacity exists to support the acquisition alongside other priorities.

Staff also summarized existing city links to the site: the city owns a "container warehouse" building that houses the visitor center and second‑floor city office space and museum functions; the children’s museum occupies the site’s first floor. Staff said there are existing agreements tied to the area and a TIRS (as referenced in the meeting) that earmarks 50% of the city’s tax revenue for that TIRS area.

Staff proposed an immediate timeline of actions: a joint meeting on April 1 for a public hearing and a 4B funding resolution, an April 15 city council consideration of the CO, and a May closing on the property if the approvals proceed. Staff emphasized that the city’s likely goal is to remove barriers and prepare the site for development to return parcels to the tax rolls; staff said long‑term city ownership of all parcels is not the anticipated end state and that multiple real‑estate models (ground leases, eventual sale by developer, etc.) could be used.

Board members asked clarifying questions about the long‑term ownership goal, the scale of what could be built on roughly 40–45 acres, and definitions of the financial “capacity” figures in the presentation. One board member cautioned that a 700‑acre example such as Mueller could not be replicated on a 40‑acre site and asked whether the city intended to hold the property long term; staff replied that the intent is to remove barriers, pursue development consistent with council direction, and return property to the tax rolls under a model selected later.

Staff noted next steps to stabilize the Char House, secure specialized legal and preservation consultants, and prepare interim actions while a master‑developer procurement proceeds. Staff also said there will be subsequent, formal actions coming to the 4B board and to city council for approvals.