Drake Development pitches Oldham Village East; city staff outline roughly 24% incentive request and pay-as-you-go TIF structure

Matt Pennington, president of Drake Development, presented a conceptual plan for Oldham Village East on about 120 acres of east-side property, describing a mixed-use development anchored by a committed national wholesaler and including retail, restaurant, multifamily housing, civic green space and structured parking.

Pennington said the development team "have control of the properties tonight" and emphasized timing as a critical factor: he said the wholesaler is targeting an opening in November 2026 if the project proceeds. He described site challenges including remnants of prior industrial uses and underground storage tanks that will require remediation.

City staff framed the incentive request and fiscal context. David Bushek, chief counsel for economic development and planning, summarized the developer's request as a combination of two primary tools: a land clearance/redevelopment authority (LCRA) benefit package (a sales tax exemption on construction materials and a 50% real-estate tax abatement for multifamily components) and a tax increment financing (TIF) plan. Bushek said his calculation of the developer's request equates to "close to 24%" of a $16 million project figure used in staff analysis and stressed the financing approach is a pay-as-you-go TIF: "they will only be reimbursed as the TIF revenues are generated for the project," he said, noting the city would not issue debt to fund the developer's reimbursement.

The developer and staff also explained how the project interacts with an already-approved Community Improvement District (CID). Bushek said the CID sales tax is scheduled to take effect Oct. 1 and the proposed TIF would capture 50% of sales taxes generated within the project area, including CID receipts. He described an existing 85/15 split of some CID revenues that reimburse prior Oldham Village West costs and then flow to city transportation projects once the developer is reimbursed.

Council members pressed for additional detail. Questions focused on the precise mix of incentives, how CID and TIF captures interact, the expected revenue stream to the city after incentives and the density and form of multifamily housing. Pennington said the development will include a mix (including townhome-style "brownstone villas" at the south of the site and higher-density apartments elsewhere) and that parking would be structured or underground rather than surface lots. Several council members asked the developer to return with quantified job estimates and more detailed financial modeling at the formal PDP and incentive-request stage; staff said a TIF commission review and a November–December return to council is the planned schedule.

Council members expressed broad preliminary support during the conceptual review, citing the site's blight history, remediation needs and the city's prior infrastructure investments. Councilmember Shields described the area as meeting both the "letter and the spirit" of blight remediation tools, while others said the project aligns with the city's Envision LS plan and could deliver substantial long-term benefits if the numbers hold.

Next steps: staff and the developer will prepare a formal incentive request and PDP materials for TIF commission review and a return to council later this year. The presentation and staff analysis do not constitute final approvals; formal decisions will require subsequent public hearings and ordinance actions.