Incentive Policy

Incentive Policy Background

This document serves to assist the City of Balcones Heights (The City), city staff, and any applicant seeking public funds for the incentives, assistance and/or project funding in understanding the priorities and key considerations for determining if incentives, assistance or funding will be granted.

The City may amend this document and its attachments from time to time. Any project submitted must receive approval by The City prior to incentive award.

Applicants and projects must meet the requirements established by the Performance Criteria and provide documentation as outlined in the checklist and application.

Key Considerations:

When considering an application for incentives, The City may use the following key considerations as criteria for decision making including the following:

Does the project create and/or retain jobs?
Does the project generate sufficient property and sales taxes to contribute to the overall of the economy of The City?
Does the project promote or create new or expanded industry and manufacturing activity?
What is the capital investment to be made by the business enterprise?
What is the reputation of the applicant and applicant’s goods or services?
Are there competing sites?
Does the business capture dollars from the outside community?
Would the project be completed to the same quality and effect if not for The City participation?
Does the project contribute to the place-making and character of The City?
How does the project impact The City’s infrastructure?
Does the project require ongoing operation and maintenance resources from The City?
Any conditional criteria determined appropriate for meeting objectives of economic development

Business Assistance, Performance Criteria and Confidentiality

City Leaders welcome new and expanding businesses to locate to The City, which is located at the commercial and geographical epicenter of the Greater San Antonio Metropolitan Area. The City is uniquely situated to provide a variety entertainment, retail, office space, biomedical research opportunities, corporate campuses, and the availability of IT infrastructure.  Furthermore, The City strongly encourages development that enhances the Balcones Heights image and identity as an urban center. 

Preferred Development and Industry

The City seeks to attract and retain quality, sustainable businesses and amenities that maintain and enhance The City’s unique sense of community and qualities of urban living.  Strong consideration will be given to projects that:

  • Bring new capital investment and sales tax revenue into the city
  • Improve The City’s infrastructure
  • Contribute to sense of place and character of The City
  • Encourage development of retail, hospitality, office space, biomedical research, data centers and entertainment venues
Performance Criteria

Performance measures will be customized to the incentive.  Depending on the incentive, qualifying companies may be required to enter into a mutually acceptable performance agreement based on capital investment and/or local annual sales tax generation and maintain a physical location and conduct business in The City for a specified period of time.

Confidentiality

In order to perform an adequate cost-benefit analysis of each incentive request, The City requests thorough information regarding the economic attributes of each Project.  This information is used in the strictest sense to evaluate the potential incentive investment being considered by The City and will be treated as confidential.

While government documents are subject to the provisions of the Texas Open Records Act and the other regulations pertaining to the transparency in government, certain exceptions may apply to information used in economic development negotiations.  Information that is provided to The City in connection with an application or request for economic incentives in accordance with the above criteria and guidelines and which describes the specific process or business activities to be conducted or equipment or other property to be located on the property for which the economic incentives are sought may be deemed confidential and not subject to public disclosure until the economic incentives agreement is executed.  The information in the custody of The City after the agreement is executed is not ordinarily deemed confidential and would be required to be released under the Texas Open Records Act, absent exception determined by the Attorney General.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, it must be understood that any requests by the public for such records/information will require address to the Attorney General for its required determination of whether documents/information may be withheld from production or disclosure unless there is an applicable Attorney General Order on the subject.

Employment of Undocumented Workers

All Agreements shall contain notifications request by Texas Govt. Code Section 2264, such as the following:  During the term of this Agreement, the Company agrees not to knowingly employ an undocumented workers as defined in the Texas Govt. Code Sec. 2264.001.  If convicted of a violation under 8 U.S.C. 1324a(f), the Company shall repay the amount of the Grants and any other funds received by the Company from The City as of the date of such violation not later than 120 days after the date the Company is notified by The City of a violation of this section, plus interest from the date the Grant was paid to the Company, at the rate periodically announced by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) as the prime of base commercial lending rate, or if the WSJ shall ever cease to exist or cease to announce a prime or base lending rate, than at the annual rate of interest from time to time announced by Citibank, N.A. (or by any other New York money center bank selected by The City) as its prime or base commercial lending rate.  The payment of interest shall be as if it had been accruing from the date the Grants were paid to the Company until the date the Grants are repaid to The City.

For questions or comments regarding the above information - please contact City Administrator Gilbert Perales - gperaless@bhtx.gov or call 210.957.3541