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Steal this small town development idea

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Burnet, Texas, has a neat small town development idea, to encourage building close in, instead of out on the edge in suburb-style developments.

Downtown Burnet, Texas
Downtown Burnet, Texas.

They call it the Hometown Housing Program. For new houses on empty residential lots in the targeted core area, the city rebates 100% of water, sewer and electric tap fees, permit fees, and plan review fees. Simple, easy, affordable.

Why does it matter? Spreading the town out with new homes out on the edges costs everyone more in stretching new infrastructure and services out to meet them. Keeping the town more compact keeps the center of town more vibrant instead of hollowing it out. This is especially important in small towns with fewer resources to go around.

Read more about it here: Burnet Hometown Housing Program. Bonus: the city has posted their ordinance, for you to use as a template for your town, too.

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About Becky McCray

Becky started Small Biz Survival in 2006 to share rural business and community building stories and ideas with other small town business people. She and her husband have a small cattle ranch and are lifelong entrepreneurs. Becky is an international speaker on small business and rural topics.

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