Taylor’s city limits have expanded to include where the recently announced Samsung Austin Semiconductor plant will be built.
On Thursday, Jan. 13, the Taylor City Council approved ordinances to annex and zone land of the plant site. The approvals came during a special called meeting that followed same-night public hearings during the council’s regularly scheduled session.
“This is the formal process of bringing the Samsung site into the city limits of the city of Taylor,” said Tom Yantis, city development services director. “We’ll have the property annexed and zoned and ready for action.”
The approved ordinances are:
• 2022-03 – Annexation of a parcel of land, consisting of approximately 1,268.23 acres, located at the former intersection of county roads 401 and 404; and
• 2022-04 – Change of zoning of the same land upon annexation from a single-family residential zoning to heavy industrial zoning with a commercial planned development overlay.
Williamson County Commissioners Court approved an order Dec. 14 in which the county has vacated, abandoned and closed portions of county roads 401 and 404. No Thru Traffic signs have been placed at the closed portions.
On Nov. 23, Gov. Greg Abbott announced that Samsung plans to invest $17 billion and build a semiconductor manufacturing plant on six million square feet in Taylor. The plant is expected to create 2,585 new jobs, with 785 indirect jobs and 1,800 direct employment positions at the facility.
Yantis acknowledged the Samsung plant was not taken into account when the city approved it’s comprehensive plan, Envision Taylor. The comprehensive plan serves as a guide for policy decisions relating to the physical, social and economic growth of the com munity. The document also includes the city’s future land use, transportation, housing and neighborhoods, and implementation plans.
“However, we have engaged our consultants, Lionheart Places, who prepared the comprehensive plan, to come back and do an amendment that will take into consideration the impacts of the Samsung plant on surrounding land uses and transportation systems.”
Public outreach meetings are planned for February with possible amendments ready for approval as early as March.
