Council approves preliminary plan, calls May 5 public hearing for Trails of Cottonwood Creek PID bond

Rowlett City Council voted unanimously April 21 to accept a preliminary service and assessment plan for the Trails of Cottonwood Creek Public Improvement District and to call a public hearing for May 5 on proposed special assessments and bond issuance.

City staff and the developer described the request as the first of two council actions needed to move forward with bond financing for Improvement Areas 2 and 3. A consultant summarized the council request as “the 1st of 2 council meetings needed to move forward with the bond issuance,” asking the council to accept the preliminary plan, call a public hearing and approve a second amendment to the development agreement. Developer Preston Walhut described the project history and timeline, calling the night “an exciting night for us” and saying phases 2 and 3 are on an aggressive schedule to support final plats.

Presentation slides showed the financing structure that contemplates roughly $6.5 million of new bond funding as part of a larger contemplated authorization (amended to a $20 million maximum). The consultant presented sources and uses that list about $18.3 million for Improvement Area 2 and $8.7 million for Improvement Area 3 and modeled hypothetical homeowner impacts — examples showed PID assessments of about $1,500–$2,500 depending on lot width and type.

Mayor Pro Tem Michael Shoop moved adoption of the resolution to accept the preliminary service and assessment plan, call the May 5 hearing, and approve the amendment; the motion was seconded and carried unanimously. Council members were invited to review the assessment rolls and to attend the May 5 public hearing, at which property owners within the assessment area can be heard on the proposed levies.