A resident who lives along County Road 175 told the Williamson County Commissioners Court on Oct. 21 that attempts to obtain a preliminary schematic for road-bond work were unsuccessful and that a contractor had refused to provide the schematic because “they didn't want it on the Internet” for fear of increasing right-of-way costs.

Skyler Williams, who identified himself as living on County Road 175 in unincorporated Williamson County, said he first received misleading information from county staff about whether a preliminary schematic existed. Williams said he was later told by the project engineer that no construction was ongoing, yet he observed active construction based on City of Leander plans. Williams said HNTB, the engineering contractor, refused to provide the public schematic and suggested withholding information could disadvantage landowners facing right-of-way acquisition.

Robert Day, the county’s senior director of infrastructure, responded during the county’s road-bond briefing. Day said the road-bond office received the first preliminary schematic in May and that county staff generally do not release draft schematics because plans often change through an iterative process that involves multiple property owners, cities and school districts. Day said the county provides affected property owners with cross-section and right-of-way information specific to their parcels during that preliminary phase and that final schematics are released once property impacts are resolved.

Day also said the construction Williams cited was performed by a private developer and not inspected by the county road-bond team, which is why county staff could not confirm the developer’s work. He told the court the County Road 175 schematic should be finalized in early November and said staff expected to release it to the public before Thanksgiving.

Commissioners urged continued communication with affected landowners and offered to meet with Williams to continue the discussion. Commissioner Long and Judge Snell said county staff make efforts to contact impacted property owners and invited Williams to meet with the project team for further explanation.

No court action was taken on the issue during the meeting.