The county commissioners court this week voted to inform the two companies competing for the airport redevelopment of an interest in a chunk of the 709-acre site. Catellus Development Corp., based in San Francisco, and Robert Mueller Redevelopment Team, a group of companies with Austin operations, are in the running to manage the project that would turn the former airport site into a mixed-use development with houses, offices, businesses and shops. The companies are to submit detailed business plans to the city by month's end.
"We've got a space crunch down here," Biscoe tells GlobeSt.com. "And we're paying more than a $1 million a year on office space." He adds that the county also spends $150,000 a year on parking for employees.
The county wants to buy 20 acres on the airport's northwest corner, which has easy access to Interstate 35. It would move all county offices that aren't centered around the county's court system to the site. That includes offices such as the assessor-collector's office where residents renew their license plates.
The move to the former airport is part of the county's Capital Facilities Strategic Plan, which lays the county's space needs for 20 years. Biscoe says that with 20 acres at Mueller, the county would have room to expand.
The county doesn't know how much it would cost to develop a campus with buildings of no more than two or three stories. Biscoe says it would be paid for by general obligation or voter-approved bonds.
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