Manor, Texas, a 153-year-old city on Austin's eastern edge, grew 225% between 2013 and 2023, and Mayor Dr. Chris Harvey says the city is now racing to build infrastructure to support an additional 22,000 residents expected by 2030. In the latest episode of The Building Texas Show, hosted by Justin McKenzie, Harvey detailed the policy choices behind Manor's transformation from a bedroom community to a full-service city, including its first-ever city-owned library and recreation center, funded through a recent bond election.
Harvey highlighted 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 downtown. The push to diversify Manor's tax base beyond residential property is a key focus, as the city seeks to recoup sales tax revenue committed away in a 1985 vote. Manor's first-ever comprehensive plan, a 600-page document mapping the next 30 years of growth, guides these efforts.
'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. He also addressed 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,' Harvey said, describing efforts to recover sales tax dollars and reinvest them into roads, parks, and drainage.
The episode also explored workforce development collaboration with Manor ISD, which was for years the city's largest employer before logistics and semiconductor suppliers arrived. 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 parallels to other Texas cities facing similar challenges, noting that Garland is currently the largest city in the country without a hospital and that Bastrop faces similar healthcare gaps.
Manor's growth is part of a broader regional transformation driven by semiconductor manufacturing, logistics hubs, and Samsung-related suppliers, creating what Harvey calls the 'Golden Triangle of Opportunity.' With 14,000 housing units already in the planning pipeline, the city is preparing for sustained expansion while addressing long-deferred civic needs.
