TXB breaks ground in Cottonwood Shores

A groundbreaking ceremony for the new TXB Cottonwood Shores convenience store at 3702 FM 2147 on Monday, Feb. 7, celebrated what Mayor Don Orr called an economic gem for the city.

“We’ve been working on this for over a year, and it’s good,” he said. “We’ve been looking forward to it. It’s a full-service convenience store with food, dining, fuel. There’s nothing like it on this side of the river or in Marble Falls right now.” 

Customers will find fresh food made every day, TXB President and CEO Kevin Smartt said in his Monday remarks. The Cottonwood Shores location also will have indoor and outdoor seating, a water cistern tank to capture rainwater for irrigation, gas pumps, and charging stations for electric vehicles. 

The new business will bring jobs and sales tax revenue to the city and help grow the local economy, Orr said.

“We’re real happy and glad to get it,” he said. “When it comes to our economy, we have brought in what I believe are gems: restaurants, a boat dealership (NXTLVL), and a convenience store. We have been extremely lucky over the past several years to be able to attract gems and good kinds of businesses, the kind you like to have be a part of your city and community.”

Smartt said Cottonwood Shores is a good fit for TXB, which began as Kwik Chek in 1972. He worked for the company for 10 years before buying it in 2011. At the time, it had 23 locations.

“If you look at who we are as a company, we made our roots in small-town Texas,” he said. “We have 50 stores, and more than half are in small towns. We tend to get involved in a community with support, and we’ve done that for years. We like being part of a community.”

Smartt highlighted the benefits of expanding to Cottonwood Shores: the amount of traffic, the location on a major road, and little competition.

“I think everything is right about it,” he said. “We don’t want a ton of competition for food and fuel. We think of ourselves as almost like a restaurant. And we look at the city. Are they a city that’s willing to work with us? And it’s a growing community.”  

HB Construction owner and President Harley Blackburn, whose company will build the store, served as the master of ceremonies for the groundbreaking. VLK Architects will design the store. 

“My TXB team is very excited, and I’ve got several people on my management team who live nearby,” Smartt said. “They feel like we’re building a store in their home market. They’ll take care of the store and the service.”

jfierro@thepicayune.com