At its October 22 general assembly meeting, the Katy Area Economic Development Council hosted an exclusive developer panel, moderated by Mike Schofield, State Representative for Texas District 132. The breakfast event was held at Houston Community College at 22910 Colonial Parkway in Katy.

“These developments are set to drive significant economic growth and shape the future of our region,” said the KAEDC in the meeting invitation.

Panelists included Russ Walker, head of development for Maple Development; Jacob Rice, vice president and general manager for Johnson Development; and Alex Kamkar, managing shareholder for Bold Fox Development.

In introducing the presenters, Schofield summarized the developments as containing over 4000 homes and estimated that at completion the communities would bring an additional 12,000 residents to Waller County, which he said currently has a population of just 66,000. “Infrastructure will have to keep up,” he said.

Walker began the presentation by describing Maple Grove (rebranded as Azalea), his company’s 270-acre development containing 885 lots located in Royal ISD. The company is currently in the design phase but expects to begin delivering lots in the first quarter of 2025. The company also has other developments in Waller County, totaling 1650 acres and 5000 lots. There is an additional 850 acres under contract he said. Walker said the company was “bullish on Waller County” in the FM 362 corridor, although there was not yet a lot of commercial development.

Rice, noting that his company, Johnson Development, will celebrate its fiftieth anniversary next year, wanted to focus on Waller County and that one of the key factors is Katy ISD, which he called a “very sought after” district by families. JDC obtained the last segment of land along Franz Road directly west of Cane Island, which is zoned to Katy ISD. The JDC development, Grange, will have 301 lots in its first phase and the 1,130-acre community is expected to accommodate approximately 2,400 homes at completion. Rice said there has been interest from commercial developers in the Grange area as well.

Kamkar, whose company is building La Segarra in the Brookshire-Pattison area on FM 362, said that his development would offer 700 homes on 215 acres, designed for first-time and second “move-up” buyers. Located in Royal ISD, the first phase of 117 lots will be completed in the first quarter of 2025. Three builders -- Cyrene Homes, Smith Douglas Homes, and Tricoast Homes – will offer plans new from the mid $250s - $400s. “Folks are coming here and want opportunities,” he said

Schofield asked the panelists why they were focused on Waller County and what the attendees should know. Walker responded that Maple Development was focused on affordability, stating that the master-planned “village” will have smaller lots but will offer an amenity package similar to larger master-planned communities. He also expressed the company’s faith in Royal ISD Superintendent Rick Kershner, whom he called “a good leader” to grow the “underperforming” district. Rice said that his company wanted to build “highly-amenitized communities” which would include things public parks in “highly desirable” school districts like KISD. He said that there are only 600 to 800 acres of land which remain available in Katy ISD to the north of the Grange development, but that land is becoming unaffordable. JDC is making a long-term investment for the next eight to fifteen years, he said. Kamkar said that his company, which acquired the land for its development in 2021-2022, was “watching where the puck was going” – that people are moving west out of the city in search of a higher quality of life where they felt safe.

Schofield also asked about the impact of the impending widening of Interstate 10 and what the developers foresaw over the next 20 years as the population continues to move west. Walker said the important thing is what is already there – industrial development. He also addressed “connectivity” – connecting I-10 to Highway 290 in order to move freight.

Rice said there is a major thoroughfare plan recently adopted and updated by Waller County and that TxDOT announced that FM 2855, which currently ends at Highway 90, would be expanding by 2030 as a direct connection to I-10. “That connection would be huge from a regional perspective from creating more businesses along that route and having a direct connection to I-10 for industry,” Rice said. Within Waller County, there are also major thoroughfares which need to expand and have access to I-10, he said. “We do need [Highway] 36A as soon as possible,” Rice said, which he called a key connection point for economic growth in the region. “A couple of segments would do wonders for this area of town,” he said.

Kamkar called I-10 “a gigantic spur” with so much positive history. He praised local and state representatives whom he said were “planning for the future.”

The epicenter of the Houston area will continue to move west, Walker said. Rice said that the opportunities being created by the new communities would allow people to live closer to their jobs or to work remotely. Kamkar said that the development of east-west nodes such as FM 529 would further spur growth in the area.

KAEDC will host the December general assembly meeting at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Houston West, 16435 Katy Freeway in Houston, on December 10 from 8 to 9:30 a.m. Networking will begin at 8 a.m., and the program will start promptly at 8:30 a.m.