Highland Shores reconstruction draws heavy resident opposition to Hillside roundabout; council authorizes notice to publish intent to issue certificates of obli

Highland Village staff presented a design plan July 8 to reconstruct Highland Shores Boulevard, update sidewalks and bike lanes, and make intersection changes intended to improve mobility and emergency‑response access. The plan includes a proposed roundabout at the Hillside Drive intersection that drew sustained resident opposition during a lengthy public‑comment period.

What staff presented: Scott (city engineer) reviewed the corridor design and explained the Highland Shores project was included in Denton County’s voter‑approved bond program; the county and city would each fund roughly half of construction costs. Scott summarized three design sections and said the current staff design for section 2 includes narrower vehicle lanes, expanded seven‑foot bike lanes and a 10‑foot multi‑use trail in some locations. He said the plan also proposes a median to reduce mid‑block crossings and a dedicated left‑turn lane onto Lakeside to reduce U‑turning movements.

Roundabout at Hillside and the public debate: The design includes a roundabout proposed for the Hillside Drive intersection. Scott pointed to Federal Highway Administration research about roundabouts’ safety benefits at some intersections and noted roundabouts reduce certain severe crash types by the percentages in FHWA summaries. But the roundabout concept drew extensive public opposition during the meeting’s public‑comment period. More than two dozen residents submitted emails ahead of the meeting and many neighbors spoke in person; common objections included the proximity of a city pool, playground and heavy pedestrian and youth traffic at the Hillside crossing and concern about micro‑mobility (scooters and bicycles) and unsupervised children.

Representative public comments: Resident Natalie Schock, whose family uses the corridor frequently, told council she opposed placing a roundabout where children gather and said the reduced tendency to stop "leaves little margin for error for quick stops." Another resident, Monica Grider, said she had not seen congestion at the location and said the city had not provided clear analysis showing time savings for emergency vehicles; she asked why staff believed a roundabout would improve response times. Several speakers asked that the council remove the Hillside roundabout from the design and urged more neighborhood outreach.

Council and staff reaction: Mayor Charlotte Wilcox said she had asked for the item to be placed on the agenda for additional public discussion and to hear from the police and fire chiefs about safety and response‑time implications. Scott said the current design was about 65–70 percent complete and reiterated that some work — notably drainage remediation and a previously‑approved sanitary project — must proceed before resurfacing. Police and fire officials present said intersection controls, lane narrowing and median features affect emergency response timing but that the department still lacked a precise model to quantify seconds saved or lost with each design alternative; chiefs said alternate remedies, such as stationing services on the west side of the city, are not cost‑free.

Financing and council action: Amber Chien of Hilltop Securities presented a plan of finance for issuing certificates of obligation to fund Highland Shores Boulevard and Highland Village Road work. Amber said the city would seek a tax‑exempt certificates series with a 20‑year amortization and an estimated total principal and interest around $12.8 million at current market assumptions; staff asked for authorization to publish a statutory notice of intent to issue certificates (a required step prior to pricing). The council approved the resolution to publish the notice of intent for a certificate issuance not to exceed $7.4 million. The motion carried 6–0.

Why this matters: Residents said the roundabout location — at a pool, playground and heavy pedestrian crossing — is incompatible with expected roundabout behavior and suggested a ride‑through design would encourage cut‑through traffic from outside the neighborhood. Council members varied in sentiment: several said they supported removing the Hillside roundabout and keeping multi‑use trail and lane‑narrowing safety features; others said wider corridor design improvements remain necessary and counselled a fuller data analysis, including updated pedestrian counts and micro‑mobility patterns, before approving a final design.

Next steps: Staff will continue design work and return with updated options; the council’s vote to publish a notice of intent begins the certificates process but does not obligate the city to issue debt. Staff said they will include community outreach and additional safety analysis before finalizing intersection treatments and construction timing.