Lake Travis/Westlake City and County Notes — October 2011

Electric cars and shopping

The Hill Country Galleria announced shoppers can now charge their electric vehicles at two charging stations within the shopping center. One is located behind Joseph A. Banks and the other is behind Charming Charlie’s, both facing facing Hwy. 71.

The stations are the first in the City of Bee Cave.

City council approves development agreement for single-, multifamily homes

At its Sept. 13 meeting, Bee Cave City Council approved 3–2 a proposed development agreement and concept plan with developer Masonwood Development, a local firm that specializes in single-family homes.

The council was hesitant to approve the plan because of its density, but determined that it would be better than allowing the developer to take the plan to Travis County for approval.

Two residents spoke against the development at the meeting.

“My main concern at this point is it’s too dense and it doesn’t have any recreation,” Bee cave resident Frances Killebrew said at the public hearing.

While the council also felt the neighborhood was denser than they would like, they said they had little control over the land, since the development was outside city limits.

“I think everyone needs to understand this neighborhood only goes into our [extraterritorial jurisdiction], which means we have little to do with this process,” Councilman Jack McCool said.

The neighborhood, which will be located along Hwy. 71, near LTISD’s bus barn, has 304 lots for single family homes. Council asked the developer to bring the number of apartments from 360 units to 300.

The developers met with Lake Travis ISD to determine the needs of the district in the next few years and found that there is a need for affordable housing in the area.

“If I think about projects in the past, there weren’t many we just loved [in the beginning]. I think we have good cooperation here,” McCool said.

For more information on the developer, visit www.masonwooddevelopment.com.

Vehicle repair shop drives into Lakeway

B&B Body Paint, operating as Service King Collision Repair Center, will open at 1403 N. RR 620 next door to the Oak Grove Shopping Center following approval of a special permit by the City of Lakeway.

Service King, a repair shop with locations in the Fort Worth/Dallas, Houston and San Antonio areas recently agreed to buy out B&B Body & Paint, an Austin-based shop.

Visit www.serviceking.com.

Council asks staff to look into noise regulations

Lakeway city staff has been asked to draw up a noise ordinance that protects homeowners from any kind of amplified sound.

“I don’t think the noise ordinance protects homeowners,” Councilman Dave Taylor said.

Council members said they had received complaints from residents about noise levels of nearby restaurants and other commercial properties.

The new ordinance may mean businesses will need permits for special events or regular use.

The staff will present their findings and recommendations at the Oct. 17 scheduled meeting.

Planning and zoning charged with reviewing fence ordinance

Councilman Barry Bone questioned the city’s attorney and the city’s building official about the city’s fence ordinance to determine whether a fence was allowed in front of a home under the city’s code.

While the lawyer said, in looking at the code, it is clear it is not allowed, Building Officer Mike Alexander said he had been told by a former city council to allow fences in the front yard, so long as they are under 36 inches tall.

Several residents spoke to the council about their concern for safety if the fence ordinance does not allow front yard fences.

“Our home is set at the back of a large lot and we installed a fence in June to keep our children safe while playing in the large lot,” said Shelly Bain, a Rollingwood resident of six years. “Please keep Rollingwood a safe place for children to play.”

Mira Vista to get 5 Fitness Training

A new fitness concept utilizing open space for fitness trainers to work with clients is opening soon at 2745 Bee Caves Road, Ste. 105, in about half of the former Suzie’s Kitchen space.

Owner Shane Selberg, a local trainer for the Westbank area himself, said he wants to open a space where trainers can earn a better wage than they would at a typical gym.

Selberg became a fitness trainer after hiring someone to help him lose 100 pounds of weight he had gained from an injury from college athletics.

“I had intentions of going to law school, but hired someone to help me to get fit,” Selger said. “My goal is to offer an alternative to health.”

The business needed a special permit because it did not fall into the categories of permitted or prohibited use for the shopping center.

Trainers will meet with clients by appointment only. Mira Vista is offering 5 Fitness Training temporary space, so it can begin setting up appointments as soon as possible.

New precinct divisions

In August, the Travis County Commissioners Court redrew precinct boundaries to reflect new census data.

One of the court’s biggest challenges was creating a new border between precincts 3 and 4, generally located south of Lady Bird Lake and west of I-35.

Precinct 3 needed to shrink, containing 48 percent of the county’s land and 43,000 more residents than the ideal precinct population, Commissioner Karen Huber said.

Precinct 4 needed to grow without diluting its majority Hispanic population, Commissioner Margaret Gomez said.

After lengthy deliberation, the court reduced Precinct 3’s population by giving southwest areas to Precinct 4 and areas near Lake Travis to Central Austin’s Precinct 2.

The court approved new borders by a 4–1 vote. Huber opposed, stating that the new map still left Precinct 3 too large and populated for one commissioner to represent.

West Lake Hills keeps tax rate

The West Lake Hills City Council approved a tax rate Sept. 28 of $0.0534 per $100 valuation, unchanged from last year.

City Administrator Robert Wood said residents will end up paying slightly less annually—about $1.86 for the average home each year.

The city tax rolls experienced an average decrease of $3,000 in property values, but a significant increase in sales tax revenues.