Raveneaux Deal May Be Win-Win Situation

[mrfootball]

Raveneaux deal might be 'win-win situation'

Water district plans to purchase 262 acres from golf course owner

By KIM JACKSON

Chronicle Correspondent

Local water district officials said they will sit down with the owner of the Raveneaux Country Club property this week to discuss a deal that could include the district purchasing the bulk of that property between Cypress Creek and Cypresswood Drive.

If the Cypress Forest PUD and property owner JP Realty Partners come to an agreement, the board would probably hold a special meeting to discuss the district's next steps, which could include a park bond election.

"We are getting close," said Tom Petrek, Cypress Forest Public Utility District president.

The Cypress Forest Public Utility District board met twice in executive session in the past two weeks to talk about a counter-proposal developer JP Realty Partners made in response to the district's original offer to buy the Raveneaux property in mid-May.

Cypress Forest board members would not discuss details of the developer's counter-proposal, but said they would stand firm on several points outlined in the original proposal. They sent a response to JP Realty on June 4, and the terms outlined in that response proposal which were made public and posted on the district's Web site were almost identical to the original proposal.

According to that original proposal, Cypress Forest would buy 262 of JP Realty's 288 acres for $5.5 million and lease it back to the developer for use as a golf course.

If at any point during the 99-year lease period JP Realty ceases to operate the golf course for more than a year, the land reverts back to Cypress Forest for use as a public park and recreational area.

The water district would also be granted a 40-foot-wide strip of land fronting Cypresswood Drive from the property line near the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints temple near Champion Forest Drive to the bridge over Cypress Creek near Cutten Road which would be developed as a landscaped trail.

According to the agreement, JP Realty could develop the remaining 26 acres at the southwest corner of Cypresswood and Champions Drive, but would be limited to building high-end condominiums, high-rise or mid-rise buildings, and three- or four-story townhouses; to reconstructing the existing Raveneaux clubhouse; and to building no more than 20,000-square-feet of commercial retail space to serve the residential units, hotel and spa facilities.

There is a no-apartment clause, and all residential units would have to be at least 1,500 square feet unless Cypress Forest approves a smaller unit size.

One change made to the original agreement involved neighboring Kleinwood Municipal Utility District.

Both versions require that the entire Raveneaux property be annexed into, and provided water and sewer services, through Cypress Forest PUD. Currently, JP Realty has a pending agreement with Kleinwood Municipal Utility District, which, if signed, would annex all but 7 acres of the Raveneaux property into Kleinwood MUD, which is located east of the Cypress Forest PUD boundaries.

In the latest version of the agreement, Cypress Forest PUD added the phrase, "JP Realty agrees to indemnify CFPUD from any claims by Kleinwood MUD against CFPUD."

Steve Williams, Kleinwood MUD president, said Kleinwood officials would not comment on the terms of the Cypress Forest PUD proposal.

The water district that ends up with the annexation deal would end up with all revenues generated through annual property taxes and water and sewer charges collected from the Raveneaux development.

If JP Realty Partners agrees to the terms, Cypress Forest PUD would go to voters for approval of the "park plan" in a November 2008 election.

The district could also ask voters for approval on a park bond referendum.

If the bond election fails, or Cypress Forest PUD cannot provide another source of funding for the land deal by the end of December 2009, then the water district must honor the agreement to provide water and sewer services to the development, and JP Realty would be able to develop an additional 15 acres at the southeast corner of Cypresswood and Champions Drive, bringing the total developed area to 41 acres.

That additional development would be limited to three- or four-story townhomes, and the 40-foot landscape buffer on Cypresswood Drive would remain.

Some residents who have been lobbying for more than a year against JP Realty Partners' development plans because of concerns about the development's possible negative effect on traffic, flooding, property values and existing greenspace, applauded Cypress Forest PUD's proposal.

"I think it is great it is a win-win situation for everyone," said Narda Martin, a member of the "Concerned Raveneaux Neighbors" group. "It would be wonderful if the community passed a bond.

"We could build trails and preserve greenspace that would keep our community in competition with a lot of the newer developments going in.

"I hope they get this deal worked out. I applaud our board for sticking to their guns and doing what is best for our community. They will prevail."

Cypress Forest PUD provides water and sewer services to residents in the Champion Forest, Estates at Windrush, Champions Cove, Stonegate Court, Woods of Cypress Creek and Sterling Gate subdivisions. The PUD also serves part of the Raveneaux County Club property, Timber Top High Rise, and some commercial areas along Louetta, Cypresswood and Champion Forest roadways.

[RedScare]

Wow, that's the 2nd golf course the water district has tried to buy in a couple of months. They're trying to buy one in this thread, too.

http://www.houstonarchitecture.info/haif/i...showtopic=16080

[musicman]

Wow, that's the 2nd golf course the water district has tried to buy in a couple of months.

someone's paying too much for water no doubt

[houstongirl]

Townhomes? Really??

I don't think the folks who live in the homes on Cypresswood would be happy about that.

[CreekDweller]

At least the golf course might actually get mowed. That place looks practically abandoned.