North Texas developers eye $50M retail project near Tres Lagos in McAllen

A pair of North Texas real estate developers inked a deal with the city of McAllen to deliver a $50 million commercial project with retail and restaurants by 2027, an economic incentive deal on file with state regulators shows.

The 36-acre property, on the northwest corner of State Highway 107 and Ware Road, was recently annexed into the city from Hidalgo County purview. It sits just south of the Tres Lagos masterplanned development. 

In exchange, McAllen agreed to pay the developer a $3 million grant, comprising 25% the city sales tax for the first five years and the incremental increased property tax value on a sliding scale. 

Troy Bathman and Jim Gissler, partners at Dallas-based St. Ives Realty, are developing Ware Village through S-SI Ware Village No. 1 LLC, a company affiliated with the firm.

S-SI Ware Village No. 1 LLC did not respond to a request for comment on this story. 

The pair have been working across the Valley from Brownsville to Rio Grande City for more than two decades. 

Their projects include retail development like the Starbucks along Interstate 69 and Morrison Road in Brownsville, the 16-acre retail development dubbed Liberty Corners in Peñitas near Business 83 and Tom Gill Road, and the Rio Grande Village retail project in Rio Grande City. 

But not all the plans, and economic incentive deals, have been fully developed, records show. 

St. Ives Realty owns about 143-acres in Rio Grande City and touted a multiphase plan which would have included retail stores such as Marshall’s and Burlington and a new hotel. But it does not appear any hotel has been built since the agreement was signed in 2017.