Council rejects proposed removal of Fred's Folly Drive from roadway master plan after split vote

Council considered an amendment to the roadway master plan to remove a section of Fred's Folly Drive between Channel 31 and Yorktown Boulevard at developers' request. City staff reported that both property owners asked for the change and that planning commission had recommended denying the amendment.

Council debate split: Councilman Hernandez and others argued preserving the collector alignment is critical for mobility, emergency access and future school routing, and they said intermittent removal of planned collector roads reduces safety and creates dead ends. Proponents for removal — including the property owners — argued that much surrounding land is already developed, that the traffic patterns have settled in differently than earlier master‑plan projections, and that the bridge and signalization costs represent uneven burdens for individual landowners.

Developers said they prefer removal because the geography and existing development patterns make the collector connection less functional and impose disproportionate costs. Councilman Scott argued removing the alignment would limit future development opportunities but ultimately moved to approve the ordinance to remove it; the motion failed on the recorded vote. The planning commission’s earlier recommendation against removal was noted by multiple speakers.

The motion failed and the roadway alignment remains on the master plan pending any future, more narrowly scoped amendment.