The Rockport City Council on first reading moved to create Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone No. 1 (TIRZ) for the downtown harborfront, approving an ordinance that establishes a seven-member board and uses a 60/40 split for incremental tax revenues.

The vote followed a multi-hour public hearing in which scores of residents, business owners and developers testified both for and against the plan.

Supporters said the TIRZ is the only practical mechanism to finance large infrastructure needs downtown without raising property taxes across the city. Scarlet Embry, who with her husband Doug Embry identified themselves as the development team for the Harbourfront, said the TIRZ “allows developers to invest in public infrastructure, convey that infrastructure to the city, and then get reimbursed by the added value created within the zone.” John Jackson, a multigenerational Rockport resident, said a TIRZ can finance remediation and public improvements that prospective developers have found prohibitive.

Opponents urged caution and more transparency about numbers. Andrew Kane, a resident who submitted written comments and spoke to the council, said the agenda packet had been updated late and that crucial financial figures were missing. He warned the city is considering “a 25 year, $30,000,000 decision of taxpayer funds” and urged the council to slow the process.

Residents and business owners voiced mixed views about the TIRZ’s likely effects on downtown character. Eamon Burke, a Ward 1 resident, said the critical long-term decision will be who is appointed to the TIRZ board because “they will have decision making authority that is a great public trust,” and urged the council to set standards for board appointments.

City staff and the city attorney told the council the ordinance creates the legal structure for a reinvestment zone under Chapter 311 of the Texas Tax Code, and that details such as the precise cap on reimbursements could be left blank in the ordinance and finalized later. During deliberations a councilmember moved to approve the ordinance as drafted with a 60/40 split in favor of the developer’s reimbursement and to establish a seven-member board; the motion removed a numerical cap sentence from the ordinance so that the cap can be determined later. The motion passed on a unanimous vote.

Councilmembers emphasized the approval was for the zone and board structure only; any specific development agreement or developer reimbursement would require additional, separate council action and public hearings. Council members also said they intend to scrutinize board appointments and to require reporting and performance milestones from any TIRZ-funded projects.

The ordinance passed on its first reading; a second reading and additional ordinance language or development agreements will return to the council for later consideration.

The vote sets the legal framework for pursuing downtown redevelopment financing; it does not itself authorize a developer contract or obligate the city to specific reimbursements.