Prop 3 aims to lure sports tourneys

Editor’s note: This is part three of a four part series examining Hutto bond proposals up for general election this November.

Proposition 3 calls for construction of a 50-acre sports complex in north Hutto.

The facility would include four to six full size soccer fields and a five-field baseball/softball complex. It comes with an initial cost of $6 million to taxpayers.

City staff said the sports complex is the most tentative of the four bond proposals, which will come before Hutto voters during Nov. 3’s general election.

The facility would bring the first public soccer fields to Hutto. All existing soccer fields in and around the city are owned privately.

If approved, city staff would likely construct the facility on a 25-acre swath of land Williamson County donated to the city along Chandler Road and County Road 100 in the Williamson County Landfill’s buffer area.

The facility would be in close proximity to several proposed HISD campuses expected to be built around the same area, including Hutto’s second high school.

While addressing a lack of recreational facilities, Hutto Parks and Recreation Department Director Mike Hemker said the sports complex could be seen as an economic development tool.

Business developers often look to park facilities when considering where to build new headquarters. Having those structures in place would make Hutto more desirable to future business endeavors, Hemker said.

Creating the facility would allow Hutto to host regional soccer, baseball and softball tournaments, which could bring hundreds, if not thousands, of people to town for the events.

“That means heads and beds in hotels,” Hemker said, referring to the highly lucrative hotel tax.

In addition, keeping those people in town would also add to sales tax revenue as long as those visitors ate and shopped inside Hutto’s city limits.

“It will keep things local,” Hemker said. “People will spend their time and money here.”

Initial designs show six soccer fields bordered by parking on the north and west sides of the field. No designs have been created for baseball/softball complex. Officials said they will wait to see if the proposal is approved before spending time and money on that portion of the sports facility, which could be built in a second phase of the project.

Some fields, though not all, would be lit. Facilities would also include concession stands and a shaded area for spectators. One soccer field would be designated as championship field, with shaded bleachers.

Hemker said the sports facility could eventually serve as a supplemental sports facility for HISD softball and soccer teams. Currently those teams cannot host tournaments in the city’s limits because of a lack of facilities.

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