HILL COUNTRY VILLAGE, Texas – A new development expected to bring in more than 300 apartment units next to million-dollar homes is raising concerns in Hill Country Village.
Embrey Partners LTD has plans to develop a property between Tower Drive and Highway 281 north of Winding Way. The property is just outside of Hill Country Village city limits.
Mayor Gabriel Duran-Hollis said because the property is just outside the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction, the city has no authority over how the developer plans to develop the property. But he says city officials have been working in good faith for nine months to ensure that homeowners around the property are on board with the development.
"The developer incorporated comments to preserve trees along Tower Drive and to limit the height of the building up against Tower Drive," he said.
Other concerns include making sure that access to the apartments is limited to the 281 access road, that the complex has fencing around it, and that the height of buildings closest to Tower Drive stay at two stories, while those closest to Highway 281 may only be up to three stories.
Durand-Hollis said the conversation over an agreement has been going on for about nine months and three community meetings, and said the developer isn't obligated to follow any city laws or requirements but has agreed to one.
The agreement includes some funding for Hill Country Village because its police department would be the nearest responding law enforcement agency, even though the property is part of the Bexar County Sheriff's Office jurisdiction.
Embrey Partners LTD officials said rent for apartments will range from $1,200 to $2,500 per month. The project is expected to break ground in early 2020 and first occupants will move in around the second quarter of 2021.
"Embrey has an outstanding record of creating quality communities in San Antonio," said Jimmy McCloskey, executive vice president for development. "Our plan for this site and the collaboration with Hill Country Village will result in a premier project that fits the context of the neighborhood."