City leaders in Seguin said the city’s investment in infrastructure updates is part of the reason many companies are investing in the area, and homeowners are choosing to move there.
“A lot of communities aren’t able to invest in road infrastructure until it’s actually too congested and it becomes a real problem. We’re getting to some of these projects before the congestion actually hits,” said Seguin City Manager, Steve Parker.
Parker said the city is focusing on proactively working on major improvement projects, including major road construction, water and electric supply, and the largest infrastructure project in the city’s history: a $200 million wastewater treatment plant.
“It’s a snowball effect, the jobs are helping influence more housing developments and then the folks that are moving here to Seguin are helping increase our sales tax revenues through going to restaurants, shopping here,” said Josh Schneuker, Director of Economic Development for the City of Seguin.
Schneuker said a huge part of the city’s rapid growth can be attributed to large companies. In the last five years, Schneuker said companies have invested more than $265 million in the area.
To keep that momentum going, Schneuker said the city is also focusing on making sure infrastructure can keep up.
“It’s making sure that we have the water infrastructure, the wastewater infrastructure in place, that we have the power that can support some of the large industrial customers as well, making sure that our road network can support the additional traffic that comes down to them,” said Schneuker.
Residents in the area said there have been some growing pains, but have also seen benefits.
“I think it’s great! There’s a lot of really good places to eat now and there’s a lot of rich vibrant culture that is popping up and I can’t say anything less than better,” said Quincy Sabatini, who has lived in Seguin for 11 years.
If anyone is looking into moving to Seguin, city leaders say there are more than 20,000 new homes in the pipeline already. That includes affordable housing and upscale developments.