Why Kyle?

In her annual State of the City address, Kyle Mayor Lucy Johnson proclaimed the state of her city as “Strong”. The mayor addressed a crowd of over 120 Kyle business representatives at the annual event hosted by the Kyle Area Chamber of Commerce. This year’s event was held on Tuesday, March 22, at the Plum Creek Golf Course clubhouse in Kyle and was sponsored by the Hilltop Center for Cancer Care.

 

“This past year marked both the completion and beginning of many essential city projects,” said Johnson. “We produced Kyle’s first truly Comprehensive Plan, opened a brand new, state of the art Public Works facility on Kyle’s east side, and Our Historic City Hall, originally built in 1912, has been returned to its original splendor. Construction is also now underway for our new Kyle Public Library and we are using the $1.2 million we received from the Hays County grant funds for our parks to build new sports fields, improve our City Square Park landscaping and improve our Plum Creek Preserve and Nature Trail.”

 

Mayor Johnson also touted the new Austin Community College Campus that is scheduled to break ground in Kyle later this year. The 75,000 square foot campus is being built in the Plum Creek Development in Kyle and will accommodate 2,000 students when completed in 2013.

 

Transportation was another key point in Johnson’s address. The access roads along I-35 in Kyle are undergoing a major upgrade thanks to a partnership with the City of Kyle, Hays County, and the Texas Department of Transportation. Work is also being done to reconstruct Dacy Lane in Kyle and realigning FM 150 east of IH35.

 

“In partnership with Hays County and TxDOT, Kyle is witnessing the transformation of much needed I-35 improvements in our city,” said Johnson. “The switch to one-way frontage roads north of Kyle Parkway has already led to improved safety for our commuters. The expansion of the Kyle Crossing Bridge, near the Home Depot, will further enhance safety and relieve congestion when completed in July. The re-design of frontage roads south of Kyle Parkway and the re-alignment of FM 150 East is well underway, and construction is set to begin in December of this year. The city has begun work to improve our city roads, including Dacy Lane, which is expected to be completed later this year.”

 

Other highlights in the address included the council’s commitment to improving some of the City’s aging infrastructure, budget planning, and economic development.

Mayor Johnson concluded her address with comments about Kyle’s history as a rugged railroad town and what makes Kyle special.

 

“The heart of Kyle still beats with much of the same purpose,” Johnson said. “Life is hard. This is not the most alluring spot on our planet. But if you come here - you can make a life for yourself and your family. You can afford a house here. You can open a business and be successful here. And you can still find kindness and community here."

 

Kyle City Manager Lanny Lambert followed Mayor Johnson’s remarks by sharing numbers and statistics regarding the city’s growth and finances.

 

“I’ve been told that Texas has the best economy in our nation,” said Lambert. “And the best economy in Texas is Austin, with San Antonio having the next best economy. Being here in Kyle is truly a blessing and we have such a promising future.”

 

Lambert showed that Kyle has been one of the fastest growing cities in Texas for much of the last decade, growing from a population of 5,314 in the 2000 census, to 28,026 in the latest census.

 

Kyle sales tax and property tax has also shown remarkable resilience in spite of the national recession that has seen most cities experience reductions in these two revenue sources.

 

“Our sales tax receipts have doubled and our property valuations have risen by 50% since 2006,” said Lambert. “These numbers show that the policies and direction that has been set by the city council is working and that the city staff has been diligent in putting the council policies and direction in action.”

 

Lambert pointed out that Kyle has become a magnet for quality healthcare in the region with over 600,000 sq ft of medical office space constructed creating approximately 1,600 direct medical jobs. 

 

Lambert also laid out the challenges still needing to be tackled in the upcoming year and probably years ahead. These challenges include: Keeping expenses and debt in line with available resources, continued promotion of economic development, improvement of water/wastewater infrastructure, transportation, maintaining a high level of quality city services, and continuing to ensure adequate water resources.

 

Kyle has been consciously and diligently working to create a full service community with living wage positions to accommodate it’s citizen’s ability to work locally while adding amenities to support a comfortable quality of life.

 

The entire text of Mayor Johnson’s speech and the presentation materials presented by the mayor and city manager are available on the City of Kyle web site.