City of Kyle approves $4.45 million downtown purchases

KYLE — Kyle City Council approved resolutions to purchase several downtown properties for a total sum of $4.45 million at a special meeting held on July 24.

Prior to the presentation, during the citizen comment period, Kyle resident Evangelina Chapa expressed her disappointment: “I have said many times that the city does not communicate with the residents. You have no marquee; you’ve knocked it down. You don’t put things in the newspaper. You don’t send notes in the water bill and we don’t get information. And this is a good example.”

Following citizen comment, Amber Schmeits, assistant city manager, gave a presentation detailing the five properties, on which city staff began negotiations. The following locations, along with the price points, were discussed:

• Hays City Donuts/ The Main Squeeze at 106 N. Burleson St. for $1.3 million

• Kyle Carwash at 111 N. Burleson St. and 201 W. Lockhart St. for $1.65 million

• Cash Box Pawn at 102 N. Burleson St. and 210 W. Center St. for $1.5 million

This comes to a total of $4.45 million.

After the minute and a half presentation and no discussion from council, Mayor Travis Mitchell made a motion to authorize the city manager to execute contracts for all of the previously mentioned properties for the listed prices, with council member Daniela Parsley seconding. The item passed 5-0. Council members Bear Heiser and Miguel Zuniga were not in attendance.

In a social media post, council member Michael Tobias explained his reasoning to approving the item.

“With these properties, my hope is [that] the city can move forward on a development plan, which includes, in my opinion, developing/adding additional administrative offices back to the downtown area. Residents are still needing these services from our secretary offices, other administrative [offices] since moving to the Public Safety Center,” said Tobias. “[This would also] help with small businesses portfolio interest, with walkable consumer traffic in our downtown district [and] a modern development.”

In a previous story by the Hays Free Press, council voted in Nov. 2023 to approve resolutions to purchase Kyle Automotive, Cash Box Pawn and Kyle Carwash for a total of $3.4 million, though the offers were not accepted. According to the Hays Central Appraisal District, the appraisals for the two buildings the city is still seeking to purchase were, at the time, $34,224 Cash Box Pawn and $237,480 for Kyle Carwash.

These are the current appraisals for the properties, as stated by the appraisal district in the 2024 year:

• Cash Box Pawn:

- 102-104 Burleson St.: $229,790

- 210 W. Center St.: $186,080

• Kyle Carwash:

- 201 Lockhart St.: $242,190

- 111 Burleson St.: $248,480

• Hays City Donuts/ The Main Squeeze

- 106 N. Burleson St.: $180,820

The appraisal value totals $1,087,360.

According to city manager Bryan Langley, the city performed appraisals on two of the three properties.

“The properties were not listed for sale. As such, the city worked with the property owners over several months to find a value that was acceptable to all parties. The appropriate price was determined by the appraisals we obtained and the estimated value of the businesses operating at these locations. Since the city also owns several other parcels in the area, the redevelopment value of the combined tracts was considered, as well,” said Langley.

The Hays Free Press requested the appraisals, but as of press time, the records had not been received.

One business that could be affected by the sale is The Main Squeeze, which currently operates at 106 N. Burleson St. After finding out through social media, owner Blanca Galvan initially began to panic.

“At first when I read about it, I was more of in a panic, like what does that mean for us? Does that mean they are giving us 30 days and then, we’ve got to pack up and go? Just the uncertainty,” said Galvan.

As of now, she explained that the city is giving them one more year to stay in the building, which should give the business time to find a new location.

“I’m taking more of a positive outlook on it. It is what it is,” said the owner. “There’s got to be something greater out there for me. So, I don’t think it’s going to have so much of an effect on me because I started off with festivals and markets. I’ll continue to do that until I find a more permanent location.”

Thomas Bloodworth of Bloodworth BBQ, which is on the same lot as Cash Box Pawn, has heard from hundreds of concerned residents about the sale: “As far as affecting our business, time will only tell … but we are looking for a new location as we speak. We would love to stay in Kyle, but we’ve had a ton of offers from outside of Kyle, as well.”

“I just hope the city can start building soon instead of buying up more property and turning them into more really expensive parking lots,” stressed Bloodworth.

As of July 25, the city has not closed on any of the properties, but has received a signed offer from one of the owners. The city hopes to close within the next 30-60 days, according to Langley. He also specified that after closing, council will assess options to develop the properties in line with the Downtown Master Plan and downtown revitalization efforts.