Not too many days ago I was driving east on 190 and, taking my eyes off the road for a few seconds, I noticed the “sticks” were going up at Heritage Plaza. Sights such as a commercial or industrial building going up or property undergoing renovation are what economic developers live for. To us, it means private investment going to work, jobs for people and an improvement to our quality of life.
As many of you know, Heritage Plaza will be home to Starbucks before too long.
As I drove on to my appointment for some reason my thoughts turned to how the Copperas Cove EDC became aware of the project. The Board of Directors and staff found out about what would later be called Heritage Plaza when it was just a glint in the eye of the developer. That developer then asked us to get involved and assist him.
A few days later that developer and I met at the site. I admit that as we stood in front of the old Shamrock service station with the long ago abandoned car out front I had a hard time imagining what was about to happen at the site. But the developer had no such problem. He easily envisioned what he was going to build there and he was excited and ready to get going.
While some consider this a small project as far as economic development projects go, Heritage Plaza had its share of challenges that had to be overcome. This column is about a couple of those challenges and who played a part in dealing with them.
First, the drainage “canal” located on the east side of the property came under scrutiny. Copperas Cove city staff brought forth its ideas as to the best way to make sure that storm water moved through that “canal” as well or better than before this planned development. The developer and the city departments responsible for controlling storm water and drainage agreed on what needed to be done. Even though the solution that was settled on cost more money than other fixes would have, both the city and the developer knew that this was best for everyone, most importantly the neighbors.
Later came the serious matter of ingress and egress. TxDot has certain rules and standards that affect how vehicles enter an exit a state highway. This matter of ingress and egress, if not resolved, could put the kabash on the project. For those of you not from south Texas, kabash is slang for “putting the finishing touches on it”.
In this instance Andrea Gardner, our City Manager, came to the rescue. I don’t believe that I am exaggerating when I tell you that she saved the project. Because of her great relationship with the folks at TXDot, established over the years while working with them on many projects, an agreement was forged between the developer, the City and TxDot that satisfied everyone. Thanks Andrea, we appreciate all that you do for this community.
The common thread you see in these two challenges is that the City, the developer, and the CCEDC worked together to make sure that the project could move on to reality.
The City and the CCEDC Board of Directors and their staffs are working on several other business attraction and retention projects that will bring new wealth to our community. I will write about other projects in future columns.
It is important for this community to know that these projects don’t just happen. It takes team work on the part of many people to make Copperas Cove an even better place to live, work and play. The city and the CCEDC are two members of the team (there are many others) working toward the same goals.
I hope you have had a safe and enjoyable summer.
Now the time has come to watch some football!!
Polo Enriquez
Executive Director
Copperas Cove Economic Development Corporation