NewQuest Pursues $204M “Lifestyle Center” in Kyle

NewQuest Properties aims to build a $204 million mixed-use project in a fast-growing town just south of Austin.

The Houston-based firm, co-founded by Steven Alvis and Jay K. Sears, is seeking up to $35 million through the creation of a tax increment reinvestment zone to help fund Vybe Park, a 101-acre “lifestyle center” in Kyle, the Austin Business Journal reported.

NewQuest, operating as Home Asset Inc., recently presented its plan to the Kyle City Council. It calls for a mix of big box retailers, restaurants and apartment buildings. The development site — valued at $30.5 million by the Hays County Appraisal District — is located on the east side of Interstate 35 on Bebee Road.

“The whole idea here is creating a lifestyle component where we get people coming from outside of the city to come here, shop, stay, work, play and do all of their activities,” Andrew Alvis of NewQuest told the city council.

Funding of the investment zone would stem from incremental increases in property tax valuations and sales taxes in Kyle and Hays County. NewQuest is still in the process of acquiring and zoning the land, but the project received initial approval for annexation.

Vybe Park would be centered around large retail spaces, while also including small apartments, eateries and possibly a central lawn that could host events like farmers markets, film screenings or live music. Houston-based Transwestern Commercial would develop the three-story multifamily building.

Vybe Park could generate roughly $6.5 million in tax revenues, although a time frame wasn’t given for that.

Kyle, located 20 miles south of Austin, is the third-fastest growing city in the country, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. A slew of new developments are on the way in Kyle, including Ari Rastegar’s 318-acre master-planned community.

—Quinn Donoghue