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City holds public hearings for annexation of 200-acre tract slated for subdivision

PUBLIC HEARINGS

Two public hearings were held Sept.18 at City Hall, resulting in no public opposition to the agreement petition submitted by owners of the Scott Ranch, William and Bessie Scott, for voluntary annexation of 200.4 acres located adjacent to city limits, generally bounded by RR12 and Founders Park Rd. north of Hwy 290.

The proposed Big Sky Subdivision project on the 200-acre Scott Tract, in the heart of Dripping Springs, is characterized by a variety of residential project types, parks, open space, and trails. This acreage has potential for 714 residential lots.

The property to be annexed is currently assigned a zoning designation of Agriculture (AG), and the applicant has begun the process to rezone the property from the base zone of AG to a Planned Development District (PDD ) that reflects the requirements of the approved DA.

The petition, which was accepted by the City Council on August 14 at its regular meeting, is a Development Agreement (DA), which is subject to the Big Sky Development Agreement.

The City Council approved an agreement between the City of Dripping Springs and Meritage Homes of Texas LLC, regarding retail water services for the Scott Tract/Big Sky Subdivision, which was followed by approval of a wastewater utility service and fee agreement for the 200-acre tract. The City had previously adopted a road agreement, related to this property that requires a number of roadway improvements, including major improvements, to Founders Park Rd.

A request for a waiver of the PDD application fees for the Scott Tract/Big Sky Subdivision was also discussed at the City Council meeting. Meritage Homes of Texas has paid $20,030 in fees for the DA, and they have now submitted a PDD zoning application that requires them to pay an additional $35,060.

At the City Council meeting, applicant attorney Rex Baker of Meritage Homes asked, “Could the City Council consider the PDD fee be offset by the DA fee which we have already paid?”

He was also concerned about paying the large additional expense before knowing annexation will be formally approved. (On this point, the council refused to deviate from normal procedure, and did not issue a premature guarantee.)

DS City staff recommended approval of a fee reduction because a portion of the time and work spent to process PDD fees had already been accomplished during the processing of the DA. A complete waiver was not recommended.

The City Council motioned and approved 3-2 (Council Members Kroll and Crow opposed) a fee waiver in the amount of $10,015 contingent on the finalization of the PDD by October 31, 2018.

Dripping Springs Century-News

P.O. Box 732
Dripping Springs, Texas 78620

Phone: (512) 858-4163
Fax: (512) 847-9054