Manor, Texas, a 153-year-old city on Austin's eastern edge, is racing to build infrastructure after a 225% population boom between 2013 and 2023. In the latest episode of The Building Texas Show, hosted by Justin McKenzie, Mayor Dr. Chris Harvey detailed how the city is preparing for an additional 22,000 residents expected by 2030, with 14,000 housing units already in the planning pipeline. The conversation highlighted the region's transformation driven by semiconductor manufacturing, logistics hubs, and Samsung-related suppliers, reshaping what Harvey calls the "Golden Triangle of Opportunity."
Harvey walked through key policy choices behind Manor's shift from a bedroom community to a full-service city. Among the most notable is the construction of Manor's first-ever city-owned library and recreation center, funded through a recent bond election. "Our city is 153 years old and this is the first time we're building these facilities. And so that's phase one," Harvey told McKenzie. The mayor also discussed a feasibility study supporting a proposed 50-bed hospital, anchored by a relationship with St. David's, which already operates a full-service emergency center in downtown Manor. This comes as Garland, the largest city in the country without a hospital, and Bastrop face similar healthcare gaps, framing Manor's ambitions as part of a statewide reckoning with suburban growth, public safety, and public health.
The episode explored Manor's efforts to diversify its tax base beyond residential property and recoup sales tax revenue that was committed away in a 1985 vote. Harvey pushed back on assumptions about local tax policy, explaining that lowering the rate is a long game tied to economic development. "The tax rate is not the tax rate because we want it to be a high tax rate. Being able to get to a lower tax rate is city leadership's dream," he said, describing efforts to recover sales tax dollars and reinvest them into roads, parks, and drainage. Manor's first-ever comprehensive plan, a 600-page document mapping the next 30 years of growth, is guiding these decisions.
Workforce development is another priority, with Manor ISD—for years the city's largest employer before logistics and semiconductor suppliers arrived—playing a key role. Harvey described regular meetings between the city manager and the superintendent to share demographic data, coordinate employer recruitment, and connect new companies to college, career, and military pathways for students. McKenzie drew a parallel to Texas trends, noting that Garland lacks a hospital and Bastrop faces similar gaps, emphasizing the broader implications for suburban growth across the state.
The Building Texas Show, sponsored by Chisos Boots, travels the state to spotlight mayors, builders, employers, and civic leaders shaping Texas communities. This episode with Manor Mayor Dr. Chris Harvey is available now wherever podcasts are heard and on YouTube.
