Council directs staff to develop plans to relocate dog park to Stagecoach Park

The Buda City Council on April 1 considered options to relocate the city dog park after the Sportsplex expansion displaced the existing off‑leash area and directed staff to continue developing plans for Stagecoach Park.

Council and parks staff reviewed four candidate parks — Stagecoach, Green Meadows, Whispering Hollow and Summer Point — and park staff noted the existing dog park footprint measures about 59,991 square feet. Parks staff presented site assessments for the four locations and recommended Stagecoach Park as the preferred site because it is centrally located, flat, has on‑site utilities and parking and does not directly abut a neighborhood.

Parks Superintendent Tony Houst said staff measured the current dog park and overlaid that footprint onto candidate parks, and described the categories used for evaluation: parking, restrooms, trails, shade and utilities. He told the council the Stagecoach site is the closest to the city’s geographic center and would be easiest to maintain because shop facilities are nearby.

Councilmembers raised several operational and neighborhood concerns. Councilmember Horn Williams asked whether splitting the dog park — locating separate large‑dog and small‑dog areas at different parks — was feasible. Houst said it was possible but warned that owners with dogs of different sizes often need both spaces. Councilmember Smith and others favored a single, larger site; Smith said Stagecoach “is more central to all of Buda” and noted the convenience for maintenance crews.

City Manager Micah Grau told council the parks commission recommended the Whispering Hollow/Summer Point area during its February meeting, but emphasized the staff had not yet held neighborhood conversations. Grau said the item was a workshop only and “we're here just to talk about ideas and seek direction from council.” He described the next step as neighborhood outreach if a neighborhood park is recommended.

Council discussed logistics including trimming tree canopy and temporary conflicts with the city’s holiday lighting at Stagecoach. Staff said trimming mesquite undergrowth and installing new fencing would be required; staff also told council that it is usually cheaper to purchase new fencing rather than reuse the existing Sportsplex fence.

After discussion, staff said the direction from council was to continue developing plans for Stagecoach Park and return to council with final designs and cost estimates for council’s decision.

Council and staff emphasized this is a relocation planning process, not a final site approval; staff will conduct neighborhood outreach and return with design documents and a recommendation.