Council backs PILOT to enable 30-unit affordable senior housing, developer agrees to build Lincoln Lane

Lockhart City Council on May 20 approved a resolution supporting a partial ad valorem tax abatement and authorized staff to negotiate a payment‑in‑lieu‑of‑taxes agreement intended to make a proposed 30‑unit senior housing project financially feasible.

The project — called Maple Park Manor — would sit on about 2.239 acres roughly 900 feet northwest of City Line Road and Clearfork Street and would be developed by JES Holdings (JES Devco). The resolution (2025‑13) was required by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs because the developer proposes to place a Community Housing Development Organization (CHDO) into the ownership structure to secure a county 50% ad valorem exemption for affordable housing tax credit purposes.

Developer Ryan Garcia told the council the project will be age‑restricted (55+) with 24 one‑bedroom units and six two‑bedroom units. Rents will be income‑restricted with units targeted at 30%, 50% and 60% of area median income; the developer said qualifying household incomes would be at or below about $64,000 for the program tiers discussed. Garcia said the request for the partial abatement is necessary after the project was not awarded funds through a competitive Federal Home Loan Bank program. He said the developer needs an initial period with lower tax obligations to pay down debt and meet tax‑credit obligations, and proposed a PILOT that begins in year 11 with escalating annual payments and converts to full tax payments in year 21.

City planning staff and counsel described the expected fiscal effect as modest in the near term and improving later under the PILOT structure. The applicant provided numeric estimates during the presentation: an assessed value estimate of about $2,771,000, a preliminary city tax obligation around $14,000 without the CHDO exemption and around $7,000 with the CHDO in place. The developer said total city taxes forgone over 20 years would be roughly $175,000 without a PILOT and about $135,000 with the PILOT and the proposed payment schedule.

Council members emphasized that the PILOT arrangement was offered to reduce the city’s near‑term revenue loss while allowing the developer to bring the project to market and to pay for a larger public benefit: the developer committed to build the full length of Lincoln Lane — a $2.4 million roadway contract, the applicant said — from Clear Fork to Maple Street as part of the broader infrastructure needed to serve the neighborhood.

No public opposition was recorded at the meeting; council approved the resolution 7–0 and directed staff and the city attorney to negotiate the PILOT/MOU consistent with council direction.

Ending Staff will return a draft PILOT/MOU for council approval; the developer said construction would begin on or before July 1, 2025, if permitting and financing proceed as described.