Cimarron community strives to revive country club, golf course

More than 50% of the residents of the Mission Cimarron neighborhood signed a petition to join the Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone No. 1, attempting to breathe life back into the abutting Cimarron Country Club and golf course. Now, the city must jump over logistical hurdles before the residents can start seeing improvements in their backyards. 

The Cimarron Country Club ceased operations in 2022 after the owners — Joseph and Danny Kamel — reported losing money for a year and a half. The owners are now in federal bankruptcy court. Since then, the club grounds have become overgrown and unkempt, much to the neighboring residents’ dismay. 

But two years ago, Mission City Council told the Cimarron homeowners they would not fall to the wayside. Now, the city is trying to make good on that promise by trying to purchase the land and expand the boundaries of the Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ) to include the community, the country club and its grounds. 

A TIRZ is an economic tool that municipalities use to develop vacant or run-down properties. As development occurs or as property values increase, the incremental increase that the city and county receive through property taxes goes into a special fund. The monies from the special fund can be used to benefit the zone and pay off the bond debt used to acquire the zone. 

The first step in reviving the Cimarron grounds was getting the residents on board — a task that proved simple, according to Jeffrey Earls, the attorney representing the Cimarron Homeowners Association. At the April 30 town-hall-style meeting, Earls reported the community reached the required number of signatures (at least 50%) to move forward with the process of joining the TIRZ. 

“I’d just like to tell you how impressed I am with the community, how quickly everybody came together and stepped up to answer the call to action,” Earls said. “It’s just so impressive how many people signed those petitions so quickly. I was thinking it was going to take a couple of weeks but within a matter of days, y’all accomplished something great and really came together as a community.” 

The next step is appraising the property so the city can acquire the Cimarron Country Club from the Kamels. The appraisal and negotiation process could take more than 90 days, according to City Manager Mike Perez. Once the city has the price, they can present their offer to the property owner, at which point the owner can accept or deny it. If the Cimarron owner does not accept the city’s offer, the property will be condemned, Perez said. 

If the Cimarron owner accepts the city’s offer to purchase the property, the next step is expanding the TIRZ boundary, which Mission City Council and the Hidalgo County Commissioners Court must approve. Earls stated that Pct. 3 Commissioner Ever Villarreal expressed his support to include Cimarron in the TIRZ. And Mayor Norie Gonzalez Garza indicated support from the city, as well. 

“You have the commitment from the city council that you got over two years ago when we had this same type of meeting,” the mayor said. “And we, at that point, at that time, committed to you all, our great citizens of Cimarron, that we are not going to leave you behind, that we are going to look out for you and that we are going to do all this to bring Cimarron to where it needs to be. We’re still committed to doing that.” 

Councilman Ruben Plata — also a resident of the Cimarron neighborhood — said the city decided to take on this project because they were worried about the decreased value of the homes in the area due to the lack of ground maintenance. Additionally, the golf course serves as a major drainage point for the whole city. Saving the golf course could save Mission from future drainage issues. 

The attorney representing the Cimarron HOA also reported more than 50% of the residents signed a second petition to create a Public Improvement District. A PID is a designated area that a municipality establishes specifically to provide improvements or maintenance. 

“A lot of PIDs have historically been used to improve downtowns like sidewalks and lighting and create green spaces downtown. But in the last probably 20 years PIDs have been used in new subdivisions in place of homeowners associations,” the Mission city manager said. “Because with HOAs, they gotta fit you a bill, they gotta hope you pay it. With a PID, it goes on your tax bill and you have to pay that. It’s easier to collect, it’s easier to manage and there’s a board of property owners inside that PID district that manage the monies and budget the monies.” 

However, a PID is further down the road, and the community will have plenty of notice before Mission decides to move forward with the Public Improvement District. For now, the city is trying to jump one hurdle at a time to reach their goal  — restoring the Cimarron property. 

“We’re going to move forward and…there’s a few roads to get there,” the Mission mayor said. “We’re trying to take the path of least resistance, but we’ll get there at the end. The destination is the same.”