Tomball EDC begins feasibility study, unveils design concepts for Legacy Square; public raises parking, noise and tenant concerns

The Tomball Economic Development Corporation (EDC) and City Council on Oct. 2 opened a feasibility study and design-review phase for Legacy Square, the proposed redevelopment of the former First Baptist Church campus in downtown Tomball.

The EDC’s consultant, Duncan Webb, owner of Web Management, told the joint meeting his team will answer four core questions about market demand, user demand, supply gaps and how the project supports Tomball’s broader economic and cultural goals. Webb said the study will include community interviews and a business-plan pro forma and is scheduled to run about four to five months, with a first set of recommendations expected in roughly two months.

“We will build a model that projects earned revenue, operating expenses and, if necessary, the contributed income necessary to be sustainable,” Webb said. He described doing sensitivity analysis over a five- to six-year period and working from the public outreach already completed rather than starting over.

Studio Red Architects presented schematic concepts that reflect feedback from a July 10 public meeting that drew about 200 attendees and produced 111 comment cards, according to EDC staff. The architecture firm showed layouts that keep the 1949 sanctuary and an adjacent chapel, remove some mid‑campus educational buildings to create a central “Legacy Square,” and add a new lobby and stage house to the sanctuary for performing-arts use.

Peter Garrett of Studio Red said the sanctuary could seat as many as…