"We're thrilled to give you an exclusive look at the Toro District, a new 83-acre mixed-use sports and entertainment destination that will be built right here in Bridgeland," Cal McNair, chair and CEO of the Houston Texans, said during a news conference in February.
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13 Investigates wanted to know more about the county's financial commitment to the Toro District and behind-the-scenes discussions happening between the County, Howard Hughes and the Texans.
In February, ABC13 sent a request to Ramsey and Briones' offices for internal communications related to the Toro District in the months leading up to the announcement.
ABC13 recently obtained more than 100 of those emails showing that behind the flashy announcement were months of negotiations involving hundreds of millions in taxpayer money and top county officials concerned about rising costs.
An email from the Texans to Harris County leaders shows the Texans laid out their terms early.
According to an Oct. 23, 2025, email from a senior vice president at the Texans, the organization's first objective was to avoid or lower property taxes on their facilities.
Under the proposed setup, Bridgeland Development, owned by Howard Hughes, would donate roughly 24 acres of land for the facility to Harris County, which would then "lease it back on a long-term ground lease for a nominal amount to develop the Headquarters, Training Center and Fieldhouse."
Since the county would own the land, it would be exempt from property taxes, per state code.
The Texans' next priority was to get the county to create a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone, also known as TIRZ, to provide funding for the district, according to that October email.
That TIRZ would use future growth in property tax revenue from the area to pay for $150 million in public parking garages and another $26 million in roads and infrastructure, according to the email.
Carrie Potter, a sports finance lecturer at Rice University, said the county needs to address what happens if the cost exceeds the budget.
"What happens if the parking garage costs $200 million instead of $150 million?" Potter said.
That concern popped up almost immediately, according to internal county emails that warned infrastructure costs could balloon.
Precinct 3's engineering director wrote plainly in an email on Nov. 12, "Harris County will be needing to contribute an additional $100M towards additional infrastructure. We are not in this for $150 million, but $250 million."
Potter said the funding is something taxpayers should keep an eye on.
"I think if the numbers change dramatically, people should pay attention," she said.
Just two weeks before the public announcement, a county chief compliance officer told top leaders in an email that the County was "not happy" with Howard Hughes failing to justify rising costs.
In the same email, that county employee also said Howard Hughes "did not deliver" on items they initially offered the County as a benefit, calling it a recurring "pattern."
13 Investigates asked Commissioners Briones and Ramsey, the county leaders leading the charge on the project, as well as Bridgeland Development's Howard Hughes and the Texans specifically about these emails.
None of them answered our specific questions or sat down for an interview with 13 Investigates, saying they couldn't provide additional details since the negotiations are ongoing. However, they all provided us with statements.
"While negotiations are advanced and progressing well, they remain ongoing, so we are not commenting on specific details at this time," the Texans said in a statement to 13 Investigates. "We can say that discussions have been extremely positive, and we greatly value our collaborative relationship with the Commissioners Court."
Days after county officials raised those concerns in internal emails, Harris County leaders signed a 10-page Memorandum of Understanding.
The developer calls it a "non-binding framework."
"It definitely feels that the cost of construction, the cost of development are being carried by Howard Hughes," Potter said.
We don't know how much the Texans are contributing financially or the overall cost of the project.
Renderings of the Toro District, featuring apartments, retail, office towers and state-of-the-art training fields off the Grand Parkway were unveiled in February.
Through the open records process, 13 Investigates obtained a development site plan and phasing map of the Toro District, which shows construction would roll out in three phases.
By 2029, the Texans' headquarters, fieldhouse and training facility would be completed along with a hotel, medical offices, retail space and the first 325 apartments, according to the map.
By 2032, there would be more retail, townhomes and a second apartment complex, the map shows.
By 2035, the map shows the nine-year plan would be complete with the final housing and retail buildouts completed, offering a total of 1,300 apartments.
"When we look at what this district can mean, and this development can mean to both the community and Bridgeland, to our greater Harris County, as well as the Texans and Howard Hughes, it's going to be astronomical," Potter said. "I think it's a win-win for everybody."
The deal, according to the signed memorandum of understanding, would come with community benefits, including public parks, youth sports venues, the potential for hosting local school district graduations, a new county annex, and $4 million donated to precinct nonprofits over a 10-year period.
"I think they've worked out a deal that makes sense," Potter said.
Ramsey and Briones did not sit down for an interview with 13 Investigates, but both sent us statements.
Ramsey's office said the county is working to make sure residents are at the forefront of negotiations.
"This property is developer-owned; therefore, it was going to be developed regardless. We're grateful that the County has a seat at the table to plan accordingly for future roads, drainage, parks/greenspace, and a county annex to provide its constituents with better access to county services," a spokesperson for Ramsey said in a statement.
In a statement to 13 Investigates, Briones said she's committed to making sure communities in unincorporated Harris County have the "critical infrastructure they need to thrive."
"As we work on the full development agreement for the Toro District, we are leveraging innovative local financing tools to accelerate infrastructure investments and to create jobs. We must be solutions-oriented and creative to drive community benefits and better deliver the safe, modern infrastructure our residents deserve," Briones said.
Howard Hughes also said they couldn't comment "because negotiations are active, ongoing and confidential."
"Howard Hughes Communities is proud to be working with Harris County and the Houston Texans on the Toro District, a project envisioned to bring thousands of jobs and significant long-term economic opportunity to northwest Harris County," the company said in a statement.