Kyle changes residency requirement for economic development board

KYLE — At its Sept. 5 meeting, Kyle City Council unanimously voted to approve amendments made to the Economic Development and Tourism Board.

History

Earlier, at its June 6 meeting, council discussed an item to revise the policy for boards and commissions to make it consistent.

“The purpose of the boards and commissions ordinance is to streamline certain things that are all the same for all boards and commissions. And then, each board or commission also has a section that lays out the specific things to that board or commission,” explained city secretary Jennifer Kirkland.

One of the amendments proposed was adding language that allowed people who do not live within city limits to be on the Economic Development and Tourism Board. Although there were already members on the board who did not reside in Kyle, this was a change to the ordinance that stated otherwise.

Council member Bear Heiser opposed this amendment as he “wouldn’t want to live in a world where [the board is] full of non-Kyle residents.” As a compromise, he suggested a modification that allowed three board members to live outside of the city limits and at least four will be required to live in Kyle. Council member Daniela Parsley was adamant that all members should be residents.

“Unfortunately, Kyle doesn't have that level of housing yet. So, [these executives and business owners] don't necessarily live in Kyle, but they are a significant stakeholder in Kyle because of their business, because of the company they run,” said Amber Schmeits, assistant city manager. “I just want to make sure that that is in your minds.”

Council ultimately voted for staff to bring back further information on how the changes would affect the board, as well as research on what other cities require.

After bringing back research at the July 18 meeting, Heiser motioned for staff to come back with new guidelines that would allow two members of the board to reside outside of city limits and would require that they have a significant presence in Kyle; it passed 6-1, with council member Ashlee Bradshaw dissenting.

At both meetings, Mayor Travis Mitchell expressed concerns for current members of the board and how this change would affect them. To help alleviate this, he motioned for all affected members that were currently on the board to stay as ex-officio, or nonvoting, members. The motion carried 7-0.

Amendments

After appearing for a first reading on Aug. 15, the item was brought back for a second and final reading at the Sept. 5 meeting. Ordinance 853 was amended to the following: five out of seven members are required to live in Kyle; the two that do not must have a significant presence in the city; and three out of the five residing members must represent the micro (one to nine employees), small (10-100 employees) and large (101-plus employees) business community.

The item passed 7-0.

Director of Economic Development Victoria Vargas was initially concerned at the June 6 meeting about the changes, but in a later interview, stated that “it worked out nicely” because two out of the three members who would be affected were serving  terms that have now ended and they have been invited to be ex-officio members. The last member who would be affected is in the middle of her term, but will now be an ex-officio member.

“With a growing city, it’s nice to have input from our local residents. Especially with the way that council has established the seats of the board, we will have representation from residents and also resident business owners, which makes them even more valuable to our community,” said Vargas. “They bring a very good perspective to the board.”

The Economic Development and Tourism Board will be posting job applications for the board to the city website in the coming weeks. For more information, visit www.cityofkyle.com/bc-tc.