Maddie Capshaw and Katherine Linares of Verdunity, Inc. met with the Brady City Council this past Wednesday to review the progress of the new Comprehensive Plan for the city. In attendance were Mayor Groves, Councilman Gomez, Councilman Garcia, Councilman Moreno, Councilman Phillips, Public Works Director Steven Miller and City Manager James Stewart. (Councilman Owens was unable to attend)
Five Main Points of consideration for Refining and Updating the Comprehensive Plan for the City of Brady were presented – Assess Needs, Engage the Public, Make Recommendations, Generate Actions and Implement the Plan.
Through the process of the presentation, council members was asked to provide their thoughts on two Recommendations from Verdunity as part of a Council Action Exercise. The first recommendation was to define what is the core of Brady (Downtown Area). Council responses included encouraging Air BnB’s in surrounding neighborhoods within walking distance (of downtown), prioritizing more retail on the downtown square and allowing residents to live in the 2nd story of buildings for live-work units (Current city ordinances allow for this).
Also mentioned was improving streets in the “Core” area, improving street signage and beautification of the area in the core, having a plan of attack to achieve these goals, code enforcement (overgrown weeds) and work to reinvigorate TxDOT interest in downtown square renovation (street rebuild and sidewalk replacement).
Under the second recommendation, begin prioritizing in-fill development and revitalization such as was done with Reuse of Old Brady Depot as Big East Station. Discussion concentrated on what could be done to enhance Brady Creek, especially between Bridge St and Elm St. City Manager James Stewart stated there have been ideas to clean up the area where the warehouse burned about a year ago and some efforts are in motion to address that. Other items mentioned included sprucing up the property along 11th St as it presents a bad image to visiting fans attending football games, creation of a cottage court of smaller homes where the old South Ward school is located and possibly converting existing older homes for retail and office uses.
The last part of the presentation and discussion centered on implementation challenges such as the vacant retail buildings across from the hospital, the G. Rollie White complex and the area that makes up Brady Lake mainly addressing the condition of the boat ramps. Some of these challenges also revolve around tradeoffs, funding, sequencing, policy and available data,
At the conclusion of the presentation, the final steps in the process were outlined –
August 2025 – City Staff Draft Plan Review – Public Review of Draft Plan (actual dates to be determined.)
October 21, 2025 – Adoption Meeting (during City Council Session)
