KHJR eyes Jersey Village town center for resi, office, retail development

A major redevelopment for downtown Jersey Village is nearing approval.

California-based developer KHJR is close to finalizing an agreement with the Houston suburb, Jersey Village Mayor Bobby Warren said at a Jan. 12 meeting. The plan aims to bring new businesses and housing options to the area.

“There are also some things that are still up in the air, such as the stadium,” Warren said.

Jersey Village would partner with KHJR to build a new town center on 33 acres south of Highway 290 at Jones Road, according to a non-binding letter of intent signed by both parties. KHJR’s master plan for the area includes 300 high-end apartments, 140 senior living units, a 100-room hotel, retail and office space, an 80,000 square foot “family fun center,” a city hall and potential minor-league baseball stadium.

Jersey Village, with fewer than 8,000 residents, couldn’t draw a full-fledged Major League Baseball team, but the American Association of Professional Baseball, an MLB Partner League, has submitted a letter of interest to the city. The 12-team league, whose lone Texan team plays near Fort Worth, in Cleburne, aims to expand into the state.

The quest to build a new town center for the west-central Harris County town began around 2008, when the city contracted North Carolina-based consultant firm Kimley-Horn to develop a mixed-use, transit-oriented development plan for the Northwest Houston suburb. That plan fell through due to failed plans to construct a metropolitan railway system in the town.

Jersey Village created a tax increment reinvestment zone for 270 acres of undeveloped land, including the project site, in 2017. The zones, which redirect a portion of all taxes in the area toward public improvements like infrastructure and landscaping, are popular development incentives across Texas. In 2019, the city brought on Houston-based developer Collaborate to carry it across the finish line. That partnership dissolved too as progress lagged, opening the way for the current development deal with KHJR.

The city bought 33 acres of land around Jones Road for $8.2 million in 2018. The developer will buy the land at cost and build a city hall and 4,500-seat multi-use minor league baseball stadium on it. KHJR would then lease the properties back to the city after improvements and construction.

In addition to the tax increment reinvestment zone, the deal could come with some sweeteners for KHJR, according to the letter of intent. Half of the hotel occupancy tax and sales tax generated on the land will go back to KHJR for 20 years, up to $7 million. The city expects to collect $57 million in revenue over a 30-year period based on the 33 acres alone, according to a Dec. 5 city council presentation.

KHJR specializes in master-planned communities with a health-focused twist. Current developments include Union Village, a 170-acre mixed-use site 20 minutes south of Las Vegas centered on Henderson Hospital, as well as Lancaster Medical Mile, a California-based healthcare district near Antelope Valley, according to the firm’s website.

Groundbreaking for the Village Center is not yet scheduled. It will be a phased development, and the first phase will not be completed until 2025 at the earliest, pending agreement, Chris Kay, COO at KHJR, said at a recent community meeting.