The City of Martindale must expand it’s tax base to prosper and taking advantage of future development is the most effective way to accomplish this. More specifically, it is essential for City of Martindale to expand it’s city limits as development occurs. This requires leverage to negotiate annexation with developers. Recent legislative changes have significantly curtailed city’s ability to annex, drastically diminishing leverage they once had. The leverage that remains for most cities is offering water and wastewater services in exchange for annexing into the City. Offering wastewater service to developers in exchange for coming into the City is the only effective leverage Martindale has left. In a nutshell, Martindale needs to position itself to offer wastewater service to developers in exchange for annexation in order to expand it’s tax base. This approach is key strategy that Martindale should consider and incorporate into this comprehensive plan.
Below is a list of critical steps Martindale needs to take. They represent a significant amount of investment, and they should be identified in the comprehensive plan.
• Prepare a Wastewater Master Plan
• Establish Wastewater CCN
• Work Closely with TWDB and Explore all Funding Options
• Commission a Financial Advisor
• Develop Developer Agreement Strategy with provisions for wastewater in exchange for Annexation
• Update Subdivision Regulations to Sync with this Strategy
• Establish a Wastewater Impact Fee