Amid opposition from some nearby residents, the proposed “Green at Katy Park” planned development district was approved by the City of Katy city council in the October 28 meeting in a split 3-2 vote. The action will change the area from residential zoning to a mixed-use development.

The project – described by its Houston-based developer Read King as a “restaurant village” -- sits on 46.27 acres at the corner of Morton Road and Katy Hockley Cutoff Road, adjacent to the new H-E-B. The center is planned to break ground in the late spring of 2025 with completion slated for the summer or fall of 2026, said a representative from Read King, the Houston-based developer of the project.

The first phase of the “amenity-driven” project will focus on creating value for the community – serving users of the 600,000 annual users of Katy Park, as well as surrounding parks and fields and the two Katy stadiums who have nowhere to go eat. “We had all this demand show up and we only have two pads [at the H-E-B center] – McDonald’s and Whataburger,” said developer Jeff Read. “We had no place for Chick-Fil-A to go.” The company’s vision is to center the “restaurant row” project around a “green” area designed as a community gathering place, which would be larger than the one at LaCenterra, he said. The firm also wants to honor old town Katy and the Katy prairie in the architectural design of the project, Read said, potentially including a water tower and silos.

Phase 2 of the project could include other commercial or office space such as medical facilities or health clubs but final plans for that portion of the project would need to be approved in a future city council meeting. Mayor Pro Tem Chris Harris asked that hotels be struck from permitted use for Phase 2; he said that council wanted “no surprises” as the project developed.

Seven public speakers -- primarily residents of the Heritage Park West subdivision located directly north of the proposed development – spoke passionately against the change, citing concerns about increased traffic, improper drainage, dirt and trash, and pollution in the air as well as noise and light pollution. Many were also opposed to the additional traffic light proposed for Morton Road; other concerns included a potential increase in crime in the area and a potential negative impact on businesses now operating in the downtown area of old Katy.

In addressing concerns expressed by the residents, Mayor Dusty Thiele said that traffic would be alleviated by the expansion of Katy Hockley Cutoff Road, which City Engineer David Kasper said would be completed by May 2025 and that Katy Hockley Road would also be widened to four lanes at the same time.

In response to a question by Councilmember Gina Hicks, Kasper also said that the proposed additional traffic light was necessary according to traffic studies but said that it was possible that it might not be needed. Problems with the current traffic light on Katy Hockley Cutoff, near H-E-B, were scheduled to be addressed by the city’s public works department this week, Kasper said. An additional light is being considered to allow residents of Heritage Park West to turn north, which would be located at West Heritage and Camillo Lakes. Kasper also outlined the plans for drainage

improvements near the property which included a 10-acre detention pond and removal of a major bottleneck in the drainage system which currently exists along Morton Road.

Former mayor Skip Connor, who chairs the Katy Development Authority, suggested that the brick fence surrounding the development could be made eight feet tall rather than six feet in order to limit light and noise pollution affecting homes in Heritage Park West, and representatives from Read King concurred.

Interim Police Chief Bryon Woytek said that the city’s noise curfew is 11 p.m. but that it was likely that the proposed businesses would be closed by 10 p.m. He said that there is also an ordinance governing disorderly conduct would also regulate noise.

The measure passed on a 3-2 vote, with Councilmember Rory Robertson and Harris voting against the project. Robertson said that his constituents were against the rezoning, saying that he had received 25 emails and hundreds of messages on social media in opposition to the plan but only three in support. “We don’t have the infrastructure,” he said.

Harris based his vote on the unknown nature of Phase 2 of the development, he said in an interview with the Katy Times. Additionally, he said, “I prefer to keep Morton Road residential.”

In other action, council:

· Approved a special use permit allowing The Redeemed Christian Church of God/The King’s Palace Church at 5371 East Fifth Street to expand its sanctuary and to build a three-story parking garage.

· Authorized the Katy Development Authority to use up to $3.295,187.00 in METRO funds for reconstruction of Pederson Road near Interstate 10. City Engineer David Kasper said that the project would start in January 2025 and be completed in mid-July.

· Drainage projects were also approved in west Katy and in Village Green West.

Special recognitions were extended as follows:

· The Aristoi Classical Academy team who won the 2023-2024 Texas Cup in the Texas Charter School Academic and Athletic League and also won the 2023-2024 Flag Football Championship. The charter school is located at 5610 Morton Road in Katy.

· November 11 was proclaimed as Veterans Day by Mayor Thiele.

· The week of October 23-31 was proclaimed as “Red Ribbon Week,” dedicated to a drug and alcohol-free lifestyle, read by Councilmember Dan Smith.

· Mayor Pro Tem Harris proclaimed November 1 as Arbor Day.

· November 2 was established as “America Recycles” day in a proclamation read by Councilmember Hicks.

Mayor Thiele said that regular meetings of the council had been cancelled for November due to the Veterans Day and Thanksgiving Day holidays, but that a special meeting of the council had been set for November 18. That meeting will start at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall, 901 Avenue C in Katy.