An area can be designated as a reinvestment zone only if it meets one of the listed criteria; in one rail-related case, a municipality may designate the zone even with the general rule in place.
Sec. 311.005. CRITERIA FOR REINVESTMENT ZONE. (a) To be designated as a reinvestment zone, an area must: (1) substantially arrest or impair the sound growth of the municipality or county designating the zone, retard the provision of housing accommodations, or constitute an economic or social liability and be a menace to the public health, safety, morals, or welfare in its present condition and use because of the presence of: (A) a substantial number of substandard, slum, deteriorated, or deteriorating structures; (B) the predominance of defective or inadequate sidewalk or street layout; (C) faulty lot layout in relation to size, adequacy, accessibility, or usefulness; (D) unsanitary or unsafe conditions; (E) the deterioration of site or other improvements; (F) tax or special assessment delinquency exceeding the fair value of the land; (G) defective or unusual conditions of title; (H) conditions that endanger life or property by fire or other cause; or (I) structures, other than single-family residential structures, less than 10 percent of the square footage of which has been used for commercial, industrial, or residential purposes during the preceding 12 years, if the municipality has a population of 100,000 or more; (2) be predominantly open or undeveloped and, because of obsolete platting, deterioration of structures or site improvements, or other factors, substantially impair or arrest the sound growth of the municipality or county; (3) be in a federally assisted new community located in the municipality or county or in an area immediately adjacent to a federally assisted new community; or (4) be an area described in a petition requesting that the area be designated as a reinvestment zone, if the petition is submitted to the governing body of the municipality or county by the owners of property constituting at least 50 percent of the appraised value of the property in the area according to the most recent certified appraisal roll for the county in which the area is located. (a-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), if the proposed project plan for a potential zone includes the use of land in the zone in connection with the operation of an existing or proposed regional commuter or mass transit rail system, or for a structure or facility that is necessary, useful, or beneficial to such a regional rail system, the governing body of a municipality may designate an area as a reinvestment zone. (b) In this section, "federally assisted new community" means a federally assisted area that has received or will receive assistance in the form of loan guarantees under Title X of the National Housing Act, if a portion of the federally assisted area has received grants under Section 107(a)(1) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974. Added by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 191, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987. Amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 2, Sec. 14.05(a), eff. Aug. 28, 1989; Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 1106, Sec. 27, eff. Aug. 28, 1989; Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 1137, Sec. 18, eff. Sept. 1, 1989. Amended by: Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 1094 (H.B. 2120), Sec. 37, eff. September 1, 2005. Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 1347 (S.B. 771), Sec. 1, eff. June 18, 2005. Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 921 (H.B. 3167), Sec. 14.003, eff. September 1, 2007. Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1361 (H.B. 2092), Sec. 1, eff. June 15, 2007. Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1032 (H.B. 2853), Sec. 3, eff. June 17, 2011.