Waco city plans to fund multimillion dollar development in East Riverside spark community tensions

KWTX 

WACO, Texas (KWTX) - Waco city officials gathered at City Hall today to discuss various investment opportunities in the works.

Most notable was an $8.2 million dollar development that’ll bring nearly 50 apartments and a handful of commercial spaces to the corner of Elm Avenue in the East Riverside neighborhood.

“This project, the Broadway Place project, has 47 residential units,” Caitland Rodgers, the CEO of Nexsus Development, said. “Out of those 47 residential units, nine of them will be reserved for affordable housing, and the rents will be restricted. We have already been coordinating, working with housing specifically, so these homes will have income restrictions, and rent restrictions on them.”

The monthly rent of the apartments is expected to range from $1,050 for the smallest one-bedroom units, all the way to $2,200 for two-bedroom units.

The real estate group behind the project, Nexsus Development, requested $1.2 million dollars from Waco’s Tax Increment Financing Zone, or TIF board, but the city staff recommended giving $350,000 for the project, instead.

“Our recommendation is $350,000 and the reason for that is because the need for the funding was on the front end, and because of the way we formulate TIF, it comes at the back,” Jeremy Pesina, Waco’s economic development analyst, said. “So to get to her request, we lowered the TIF down to $350,000 so our recommendation is to pay that CO, the issuing of certificate of occupancy, and then we’ve got with Galen to give ARPA funding for the low income apartments to meet the rest of the need.”

While the board ultimately voted in favor of the funding and continued development of the project, some community members in attendance weren’t as thrilled.

“We need affordable, subsidized, workforce, transitional senior housing,” Jeanette Bell, president of the North East Riverside Neighborhood Association, said. “The construction of housing has not kept up with the population growth. We need development for everyone, not just a select group of people, but for everyone.”

Bell says that expensive projects like these make it impossible for locals to continue living in East Riverside.

“These people have been over here for generations and generations,” she continued. “They want to raise their kids like they were raised over here in North East Riverside. And they feel like they’re being pushed out.”

Given that the TIF board approved the funding recommendation today, it’s next course of action will be going to the Waco city council for approval at its Jan. 17 meeting.