Gisela Houseman and the Houseman Companies are donating 10 to 20 acres of commercial property off Interstate 10 to help the city of Orange attract a big box store.
Tuesday, she told the city Economic Development Corporation board she hopes the store comes and will promote growth in Orange and provide jobs.
City Economic Development Director Jay Trahan said big box stores need incentives to locate to a community. Free land is one of those incentives. He said the Houseman donation is worth $1.2 million to $2.5 million.
In return, the economic development corporation board agreed to spend $650,000 to build a four-lane boulevard into the Houseman Eagle Point acreage. The land is on the north side of Interstate 10 and the east side of State Highway 62. The site is in the Orangefield school district.
The boulevard will be built only if a major business constructs a store at the land. Eagle Point has about 250 acres. The Orange City Council also approved the economic development deal. The deal can be renewed after a year if a company does not build a large store.
Mrs. Houseman said she and her late husband “worked diligently going on 30 years to bring” developments to Eagle Point. She said one time they traveled to California to get Flying J Travel Plaza at the land. Flying J instead bought land on the opposite side of the interstate, but Mrs. Houseman said the company came to Orange.
Economic Development Board Member David Meaux said he hopes the big box store will be the linchpin to attract other stores and businesses.
The proposed boulevard will be four lanes wide and about 1,200 feet long. The boulevard will allow traffic into the proposed store and open access to land for other businesses.
Trahan stressed that the deal with the big box store is in the works and no agreement has been signed.
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