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 1,000 people in a maximum configuration (about 750 on the main floor and 250 on the upper floor), with the main-floor seating designed to be flexible for concerts, banquets and other events. The firm illustrated exterior aesthetics drawing on Tomball’s German heritage and a more rustic local character, and emphasized shading and pedestrian circulation in the campus plan.

Public commenters, stakeholders and civic groups pressed the EDC and consultants on tenant uses, operations, funding and the site’s impacts. Barry Clark of Commonwealth Emergency Assistance Ministries requested roughly 4,300 square feet of space to serve clients who currently line up on the sidewalk for food and financial assistance; Clark said Tuesday is their busiest distribution day, with about 70 families served on a typical Tuesday.

“We want to take the ministry part — our client engagement, the folks out on the sidewalk — and the caseworkers inside,” Clark said, describing storage and program needs and noting the proximity of the campus to the organization’s food pantry.

Brandy Beyer of the Tomball Chamber of Commerce said the chamber and local nonprofits seek a flexible venue that would support a 1,000-seat auditorium for annual events such as a pageant and a chairman’s ball. Dana Daigle, president of the Tomball Art League, urged that gallery and studio space be included for local artists; she said the league has more than 80 members and currently relies on off-site locations to exhibit work.

Matt Davis, owner/promoter of Main Street Crossing, described his organization’s experience programming hard-ticket concerts and said a properly operated mid-size theater can generate frequent events and regional draw; he and other presenters discussed multiple operational roles the private sector might play, from occasional tenant to long‑term operator.

Multiple speakers raised concerns about parking, circulation and neighborhood impacts. Scott Moore, a downtown business owner, and others warned the downtown already has a parking shortfall during peak periods and urged the EDC to prioritize the parking and mobility study. Kyle Bertrand of AIG, the consultant conducting the parking and mobility study, said the team had completed initial assessments and would refine recommendations once the feasibility team determines likely seating and use scenarios (for example, 500 seats versus 1,000 seats).

Design and program clarifications in the meeting included: - The EDC has proposed a citizen stakeholder committee of 12 members (including two youth, one city council member and the three EDC board committee members), to be selected by open application with staggered terms. - The playground on the site is likely to be removed because it does not meet current code and will be evaluated by a specialist, staff said. - Studio Red showed conceptual additions: a roughly 30–35 foot lobby addition at the front and a deeper rear addition (roughly 50 feet in the back) to accommodate a fly loft, back-of-house spaces and mechanical rooms. The firm reported the existing campus footprint is about 27,000 square feet; the proposed additions would add depth but final square-foot figures will depend on programming and the feasibility results.

The consultants and some council members emphasized that many revenue scenarios depend on a mix of nonprofit and commercial tenants; Webb said nonprofit tenants typically pay below-market rents and a realistic sustainability model must account for that difference and for contributed income such as donations, grants and private philanthropy.

Several speakers asked the EDC and consultants to incorporate shade, cooling strategies and acoustical treatments to reduce summer heat and to mitigate noise impacts on adjacent residences. Studio Red and the consultants said they have theatrical, acoustic and rigging specialists on the team and will address sight lines, flexible seating and other technical requirements during schematic and business-plan phases.

Next steps outlined in the meeting: finish stakeholder outreach, continue the parking and mobility study, recruit and appoint the citizen stakeholder committee via an open application, and complete the feasibility/business-plan work in the coming months. The EDC packet was made available online and will include anonymized public comments collected to date.

The meeting concluded with a procedural motion to adjourn, which passed unanimously; no other formal actions or votes on the project were taken at the Oct. 2 meeting.