The Dublin City Council considered assisting a major subdivision to be constructed on the north side of town and EDC matters in a regular meeting Monday, July 13.
Brad Allen was present to speak to the full council about Emerald Ridge, a subdivision that he and his son, Joel, are looking to build on Hwy. 377 north of Shamrock Apartments and continuing east to Norton. The project is expected to be done in two phases with phase I containing 43 homes and seven commercial lots. Allen said houses are priced between $275,000 to $375,000.
It was noted that sewer is already available on the entrance at Patrick Street but the cost to put in water is estimated at $500,000. With the requirement for closed loop systems and pipes to be in place before roadways are laid, water lines would need to be installed before other work can be completed.
Allen said he and his son are putting in $1 million in infrastructure alone with electrical, sewer and streets. That’s not including building construction so they are looking for savings where they can. Allen is experienced with the process, having developed other subdivisions in Erath including Good Tree in Stephenville.
Councilmembers were also briefed on the economic benefit of the construction in additional taxes collected by the city and Dublin ISD as well as additional sales tax collections.
According to estimates presented at a recent Economic Development Corporation meeting, on year 1 the city will see $30,985.14, year 2 $61,970.28, year 3-5 $93,894.37, for a 5-year total of $374,638.54 at the current tax rate in property taxes alone.
With additional revenues such as water and sewer, the city revenue for the project over a 5-year period is an estimated $651,238.54.
Dublin ISD additional income from property taxes over a 5-year period is estimated at $434,513.89.
Councilmember Bo Kabala cited several successful public private partnerships in larger cities and asked Allen if knew of any in smaller communities. Allen said he had heard about a local one in Early but didn’t have direct knowledge.
Councilmember Sammy Moore asked Allen if there was any way for the city to get assurances of the number of home constructed per year. (Allen said they aimed to build 12-15 homes per year with five model homes to be built as soon as they get approval for lines.) Allen said with the fluctuation of construction costs and market, he couldn’t guarantee a certain number.
Moore asked Director of Infrastructure and Development Cory James if the lift station on that side of town could handle the number of properties in the subdivision and James said it was designed to do so.
After Allen spoke, Dublin EDC President Paul Bradberry spoke to council, reporting that as a type B EDC, they are able to help fund projects for infrastructure and ‘making it a better place to live.’ After listening to Allen, the EDC drafted a letter of intent saying they would cover $250,000 of the $500,000 cost for the water lines (over a 4-year period). The lifelong Dubliner said he appreciated the economic considerations before the council, having served for 9 years, and didn’t want them to feel like the EDC was ‘strong arming’ them into the decision. He noted the immediate benefit in switching the land from its current ag exempt status to residential, noting it will increase from around $65 in tax collections per year to around $10,000.
“Our pledge will get you through the first four years [of the project],” said Bradberry, adding “The only way to help funding is to increase the tax base in town.” He added the development needed to be looked at as an investment, not an expense.
The council retired to closed executive session for discussion. After returning to open session, the council voted to table the matter so they could speak to a lawyer. Dublin mayor David Leatherwood said, “We support this. We just have to figure out how to support this.”
Councilmembers also discussed the selection of EDC board members with councilmember Nancy Williams reporting the discovery that board members are supposed to be reviewed annually by the city council for approval. She said it had not been done in several years.
EDC Executive Director Noah Cullis said the intent is for staggered 2-year terms for directors and the board recently approved Paul Bradberry, Darrell Curry and Lanora Davidson in 1-year terms and Troy Camp, Ben Pate and Karen Wright to 2-year terms. Hearing those recommendations, councilmember Darren Turley moved to approve the recommendations with a second by Kabala. The vote passed with Williams against, noting she appreciated the majority of those directors but had concerns with one. It was noted the by-laws stated that appointments were supposed to be made for approval in October so the vote was rescinded with a new vote for immediate approval of those recommendations with review of the single-year directors in October 2026 and two-year directors in October 2027.
A public hearing was heard for a variance in four lots at 508 E. Liveoak (at Shamrock). Council was informed the property owners wished to install a