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Economic Development board weighs recruitment priorities, Old Town barriers and 'experiential' destinations
Summary
Board members discussed recruitment strategy—creating destination experiences combining food, entertainment and retail—as well as landlord engagement, Old Town infrastructure and potential incentives to attract businesses.
Board members and staff discussed strategic priorities for recruiting restaurants, retailers and entertainment uses to Keller, focusing on creating destinations that encourage visitors to stop and spend time in the city rather than simply pass through.
Why it matters: Board members framed recruitment as a tool to boost non‑property‑tax revenue and help keep property taxes lower by capturing sales tax that currently leaks to neighboring markets. Members emphasized that recruitment should prioritize uses that create synergy—food, entertainment and retail clustered to hold visitors for several hours.
Topics explored included using anchors and complementary uses to build critical mass (examples discussed included a food hall/food‑hall‑style pop‑up model, a food‑truck park with stages, and family‑oriented entertainment such as bowling, Topgolf‑style concepts, indoor mini‑golf, or pickleball); the potential to reuse existing commercial space (reducing build‑out cost for entertainment anchors); and tactics to highlight and develop Old Town Keller as a unique, small‑town destination.
Board members raised practical barriers. Several members called out the condition and layout of older Old Town buildings—higher conversion and remediation costs, parking constraints, and inconsistent streetscape—making some restaurant conversions expensive. The board discussed landlord engagement and recent meetings staff held with Regency Centers and Tibani to discuss leasing trends, collaboration opportunities and landlord reluctance to invest in property improvements. Staff said the city has been investing in Old Town infrastructure (referencing the Elm Street project and façade improvement grant program) and will continue work to reduce barriers to leasing and redevelopment.
Members suggested near‑term tactics such as: recruiting a recognizable but not national‑scale anchor (examples given were regional coffee/restaurant brands), promoting cluster development that leverages existing parking and adjacent entertainment uses, and exploring public‑private approaches (grants, façade assistance or targeted incentives) to encourage landlord investment. Board discussion also referenced other cities as models—Main Street Grapevine, Rainey Street in Austin and food‑hall examples in other states—and emphasized learning from their successes and pitfalls (including saturation risks and infrastructure needs).
Staff updates in the meeting included a brief economic update listing new business certificates of occupancy and upcoming events; staff confirmed restaurant week will be July 28–Aug. 3 with registration opening April 14 and public promotion beginning May 1.
Ending: Board members asked staff to develop a short list of recruitment objectives for the strategic plan that prioritize creating destinations and reducing barriers in Old Town; staff said they will return with refined objectives and possible incentive approaches for board review.
