PRESENTER: Presenter
Jordan Matney, Deputy City Manager
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SUBJECT: Title
Discuss and consider the appeal by Lennar Corporation of Denial of Eligibility for Partial Reimbursement of Park Development Fees for Navarro Subdivision.
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DEPARTMENT: Parks and Recreation
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COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: Outside City Limits
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
The Lennar Corporation (Developer) is developing a single-family subdivision named Navarro in the Guadalupe County Extra Territorial Jurisdiction (ETJ) consisting of fifteen units and a planned 1,319 dwelling units (DUs), as shown in Attachment A. Under the applicable Park Land Dedication and Development Ordinance, and based on the number of planned DUs, the development is required to do one of the following:
• Dedicate 7.85 acres of public park land and construct a public park in lieu of fees,
• Forgo park land dedication and park construction and instead pay fees-in-lieu of park land dedication ($208/DU or $274,352 total) and park development fees ($1,528/DU or $2,015,432 total).
• Set aside land for a 7.85-acre private park and construct certain park improvements to receive a 75 percent reimbursement of park development fees ($1,511,574).
Developers are required to pay the fees-in-lieu of park land dedication and park development fees at the time of platting for each unit as a fiscal surety. Requirements for land dedication and park development are specified in City Ordinance and the City of New Braunfels Park Land Dedication Manual.
Through their Park Land Dedication Ordinance Letter of Intent dated March 26, 2019, the Developer stated their intention to set aside 4.44 acres for a private park to receive a 75 percent reimbursement park development fees (Attachment B). During the initial Master Plan approval by the Planning Commission on July 2, 2019, City staff noted that due to the insufficient acreage the proposed private park did not meet ordinance requirements to receive the 75 percent reimbursement of park development fees (Attachment C). Revisions to the park proposal would be required, and Parks and Recreation Department staff would review revised proposed recreational amenities at the time of platting to determine reimbursement eligibility.
For phased developments such as Navarro, the parameters for private parks are established during the platting of the first unit. Specifically, private parks must be platted concurrently with the plat of the first phase of development (Sec. 118-60(f)(4)), and private park design must be reviewed and approved by the Director of Parks and Recreation prior to the platting of the first unit (Sec. 118-65.1(c)(6)).
From 2019 to 2023, the Developer submitted multiple plat applications for multiple units of development. Platting of the first unit did not include the required parameters for the private park. On August 9, 2019, City staff notified the Developer’s consulting engineers that the Developer’s intentions were unclear, and that the City had not received any documentation regarding the private park. The engineer’s response on August 20, 2019 stated that the Developer would pay only fees (i.e., forgo development of a private park). Attachment D includes this correspondence.
Despite the previous statement, subsequent platting applications from the Developer indeed indicated an intention to set aside varying amounts of park land (13.87 to 19.08 acres) for a private park. On September 2, 2021, the Developer submitted a plat application to establish a 3.78-acre lot for a private park as the sixth unit of the Navarro subdivision. The plat was approved, and the Developer began construction of a private park amenity center on the lot.
On September 7, 2023 and November 6, 2023, staff met with the Developer to clarify intentions, determine project status, and consult on reasonable options for achieving compliance with the Ordinance. Despite the lack of clear information previously presented to the City, staff indicated a willingness to consider reimbursement eligibility for private park development if clear direction for the private park could be achieved, subject to the other requirements of the Ordinance. Options discussed included expanding the 3.78-acre park via a street crossing to include adjacent lots, replatting certain contiguous lots to park land, and pursuing approval for partial/prorated reimbursement based on the amount of eligible park land developed.
Since 2023, staff have provided consultation on the requirements of the Ordinance and have reviewed multiple design proposals for reimbursement eligibility. During this time, the Developer constructed a recreational trail on an adjacent drainage lot to expand the acreage of the private park (Attachment E). Throughout the process, staff advised that the supplemental land associated with the trail must be designated and duly recorded as park land to be eligible for reimbursement (Attachment F).
ISSUE:
In May 2026, the Developer determined that a bisecting portion of the supplemental area used for the recreational trail must be used for drainage, rendering that acreage ineligible for reimbursement. The Ordinance requires that land used for a private park be restricted to park and recreation purposes through recordation, and that detention/retention areas may not be used to meet acreage requirements.
The Developer has since submitted an additional proposed concept for private park land to achieve the acreage necessary for the subdivision (Attachment G). The proposal remains non-compliant and violates several ordinance requirements, as the proposed land is non-contiguous and encumbered by easements. Of the 7.85 acres required for the 1,319 planned dwelling units, the developer has developed 5.93 compliant acres to date. This compliant acreage is equivalent to serving 996 DUs, leaving a deficit of 1.92 acres and 323 DUs unserved by compliant park land.
Due to ongoing residential development within the Navarro subdivision, there appear to be no other land use alternatives to allow the Developer to achieve the necessary acreage for a private park.
Pursuant to the Ordinance, this issue was referred to the Park and Recreation Advisory Board for direction and a recommendation (Sec. 118-65.4) at their July 14, 2026 meeting. The Board was asked to consider two options developed by staff:
Option 1 (Denial): This option would deny the developer any fee reimbursement due to the persistent lack of compliance with ordinance requirements, including the failure to secure design approval prior to platting and the ongoing non-compliant state of the proposed park land.
Option 2 (Prorated Reimbursement): This option would recommend that City Council approve an agreement to accept the 5.93 eligible developed acres and issue a 75 percent fee reimbursement only for the 996 served dwelling units, while denying any reimbursement for the remaining 323 unserved dwelling units.
The Park and Recreation Advisory Board voted unanimously (7-0) for Option 1, to deny the Developer any reimbursement of park development fees.
On July 21, 2026, the Developer exercised their right to appeal the decision of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board in writing through the City Manager to City Council. This item represents the Developer’s appeal.
STRATEGIC PLAN REFERENCE:
N/A Economic Mobility N/A Enhanced Connectivity N/A Community Identity
N/A Organizational Excellence YES Community Well-Being
Community Well-Being Goal: Implement services that enhance health and well-being to improve overall quality of life for residents.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The total required park development fee for the 1,319 planned dwelling units, calculated at $1,528 per DU, equates to a total of $2,015,432.
If the City Council upholds the Park and Recreation Advisory Board’s decision of Option 1 (Denial), there will be no fiscal impact to the City, and the City will retain the full $2,015,432 in collected park development fees.
Under Option 2 (Prorated Reimbursement), the City would issue a 75 percent fee reimbursement for the 996 served dwelling units, which equates to $1,141,416. The City would retain the remaining $874,016 in park development fees.
Recommendation
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends upholding the decision of the Park and Recreation Advisory Board, resulting in the denial of reimbursement to the Developer.