Bee Cave approves Ordinance 600 to update thoroughfare plan after staff presentation and public comment

The Bee Cave City Council voted to approve Ordinance 600, updating the city's thoroughfare plan, after a staff briefing and public hearing at its March 24 regular meeting.

Sean and Mallory, planning staff, summarized the proposed amendments to the thoroughfare plan included in Section 3.2 of the Bee Cave 2037 comprehensive plan. They said Planning & Zoning recommended approval and outlined the principal changes: adoption of alignment Option 3 for the Southwest Collector at Hamilton Pool Road (to improve safety and operations near BK Elementary), designation of Shops Parkway as a private road rather than a public thoroughfare, the removal of several minor connector roads from the map, addition of two neighborhood collectors between B Cave Parkway and Skaggs Drive, and a realignment of a primary collector near the Field of Dreams sports complex.

Mallory reviewed floodplain and water-quality buffer constraints and told council the crossing shown in one area could carry a conservative cost estimate of roughly $4'$5 million to construct. "Based on some of the conservative assumptions, it would be approximately 4 to $5,000,000 for crossing a floodplain," Mallory said, noting that no detailed design has been completed.

During the public hearing, Robert Armstead of Travis County Parks said the alignment shown on the map appears to cross county park property and a county building that houses maintenance and ranger operations, and asked the city to coordinate with county staff on any design changes. "On the map, it looks like it cuts across our property, across our building," Armstead said.

Council members discussed the implications of removing the Shops Parkway connection to SH 71, with some noting the original intent had been to provide local connectivity that could reduce trips onto the state highway, and others noting the cost and operational concerns of routing traffic beside a public safety facility. Staff agreed to take an action item to explore alternate alignments that might preserve a local connection without routing heavy traffic through the public safety site.

A motion to approve Ordinance 600 was made and seconded; the measure carried unanimously by voice vote.

The ordinance amends the city's long-range thoroughfare map; staff said the map lines are conceptual and engineering and right-of-way decisions would come later as projects advance. Council members said they expect to coordinate with affected property owners, TxDOT and Travis County on future design and right-of-way issues.

Next steps listed by staff include finalizing the map update, continuing coordination with TxDOT and private property owners, and integrating the thoroughfare plan work into a broader comprehensive transportation plan to address citywide mobility needs.