Coalition against Fitzhugh venue surpasses one year

DRIPPING SPRINGS — For the past year, a local coalition made up of approximately 2,400 neighbors has been working to raise awareness of a proposed venue in Dripping Springs.

A California developer, Blizexas LLC, is planning to build a 5,000-seat outdoor concert venue off Fitzhugh Road in Dripping Springs — designed to be similar to that of its 2,500-seat open-air venue called Mountain Winery in Saratoga, California. While this may sound intriguing to some, the Stop Fitzhugh Concert Venue Coalition has several concerns of the venue’s impact if it were to be built.

• Barton Creek: The wastewater treatment facility and disposal site are proposed to be located approximately 0.25 miles east of the intersection of Crumley Ranch Road and Fitzhugh Road and in the drainage basin of Barton Creek in Segment No. 1430 of the Colorado River Basin. If the venue’s wastewater system surpasses its limits, sewage discharge to Barton Creek could be a result.

• Light: While the site is not in the city limits of Dripping Springs, the city is still known to have become the first in Texas designated as an International Dark Sky Community. The coalition is concerned that light pollution will be seen for miles by neighbors and wildlife.

• Noise: The coalition members are worried that added concert and event noise can be damaging to existing residents and surrounding wildlands.

• Traffic: The venue is proposed to be located off Fitzhugh Road in Dripping Springs, which is already narrow, winding and can be dark at night. The coalition is concerned that adding thousands of concert attendees — who may have been drinking alcohol — could increase the potential for traffic and accidents. And it could lead to delays for emergency vehicles to commute to residents in need of those services.

“My home is right at Barton Creek on Fitzhugh Road, so whatever is going to run off is going to come right by my house and right down the road. I am concerned about the noise, light and traffic. We've all experienced traffic accidents, not personally, but have witnessed traffic accidents on Fitzhugh Road, Crumley Ranch and Trautwein … It doesn’t take a rocket surgeon, as I call it, to figure out that if you put that many cars on the road at a time it's going to be a problem,” said Kevin Fleming of the Stop Fitzhugh Concert Venue Coalition. “Some people may not even be able to get out of their driveways or into their homes. Then, the patrons leave at 11 o'clock or 12 o'clock, and you put 2,000 cars with people that have been drinking, that's not good.”

Along with his house neighboring the proposed venue site, Fleming also got involved with the coalition because he is concerned about the situation that is surrounding Shield Ranch — a 6,400-acre nationally designated historic district and protected wildland comprising 10% of the Barton Creek watershed.

“They have built this compound to bring kids to experience the outdoors [and] nature. The nights that they are probably going to be out there are Friday and Saturday night,” he said. “This venue is just going to blast them and what will that do, not only to the kids and people at their camp but also to the wildlife in the area? I think they will scatter and run. That’s not what we want to do.”

Timeline highlights

2021

In the summer of 2021, plans started to develop around the proposed concert venue and owners of Shield Ranch and community members who would be affected by the development began to take action. Shield Ranch owners and staff held conversations and meetings with neighbors; after realizing that there was major opposition to the venue, the Stop Fitzhugh Concert Venue Coalition was launched in response.

2022

November 2022 was busy for the coalition with more than 100 community members showing up for its kickoff at Beerburg Brewery. Bob Ayres, president and owner of Shield Ranch, and chief executive officer Blake Murden spoke. Hays County Commissioner Walt Smith and Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District Chief Operating Officer Charlie Flatten were also in attendance; they shared data, research and concerns about the new proposed concert venue on Fitzhugh Road, as well as what concerned citizens can do to voice their concerns.

Also that month, more than 200 attendees shared their concerns at a Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) public meeting. Alongside Shield Ranch, the coalition received support from Save Our Springs Alliance, Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance, Travis Audubon Society, The Nature Conservancy of Texas, Thundering Paws and Fitzhugh Neighbors last year.

2023

In February 2023, the developers released a potential schematic for the venue and it was included in their Edwards Aquifer Contributing Zone Plan application. As the schematic shows, it looks like the venue resembles more of a baseball stadium type of structure and approximately 22.02 acres of impervious cover is planned (66.45% of the total project site).

More than 2,100 neighbors signed up to help spread news against the proposed concert venue in May 2023. The coalition raised concerns about emergency vehicle response times and traffic safety on Fitzhugh Road in light of National EMS Week.

On Monday, July 17, 2023, members of the coalition delivered letters to 20 elected officials, including the Hays County Commissioners Court, highlighting traffic concerns. The letter brought awareness to a number of deficiencies and omissions in the Traffic Impact Analysis (TIA) submitted by the developer, as according to the coalition. Commissioner Walt Smith responded in a letter to the concerns about public safety and increased traffic, outlined in the TIA study, and addressed the deficiencies identified in the developer’s permit and provided updated information on the commissioners court’s authority in the approval process.

In September 2023, TCEQ announced it will host a public meeting — which has yet to be formally scheduled — about a potential music venue development following a request from Sen. Donna Campbell. The meeting will provide an opportunity for community members to ask questions, voice concerns and formally comment on the proposed permit. If approved, the permit would authorize the disposal of treated wastewater and establish the conditions under which Fitzhugh Concert Venue must operate.

Following multiple requests from the public, Hays County Judge Becerra hosted a community forum on Oct. 2, 2023, allowing neighbors to voice their concerns about the proposed concert venue. Commissioner Smith, Travis County Commissioner Ann Howard, Hays County County Chief of Staff Alex Villalobos, Hays County Fire Marshal Mark Wobus, Hays County Director of Development Services Marcus Pacheco and Hays County General Counsel Tucker Furlow were also in attendance. Community members Terri Van Ackeren, Mike Clifford (technical director for Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance), Richard Sorenson and others shared their concerns with the elected officials and public attendees.

Next steps for the coalition

The coalition members are looking ahead to the upcoming TCEQ public meeting that is anticipated to take place in January or February of next year.

“That’ll give us an opportunity to face the developer if they show up. There was a public hearing set by the Hays County judge for this topic and the developer did not show up,” Fleming said. “There were probably 500 people that showed up to talk about it and voice their concerns and issues that are at the forefront.”

Fleming added that they also want Hays County to reassess the TIA study and request more detailed information. The coalition is concerned that the TIA did not include analyzing the impact  of additional traffic on the intersection of US Highway 290 West and Fitzhugh Road, as well as not addressing emergency vehicle access to the proposed venue and homes in the area during events.

“How is this really going to impact the road? Is it safe? There's what's called a roadway safety audit that can assess a roadway and take into account the road conditions, how much traffic will be on it and what the impact would be,” he explained. “We think that would be very helpful.”

People who may not live in Dripping Springs or near Fitzhugh Road, but travel often in the area, could still be impacted if the venue was to be constructed. Fleming said that everyone should still be aware of the development plans.

“If they're aware of how that area has been and why people want to go there, it's because of the peace and quiet that's out [with] the trees and the roadway. It’s a beautiful roadway if you're not having to have that many cars on at once,” Fleming said. “The reason why people love to drive out there is to go have a nice drive and experience just the quiet. So, if they see [the venue] come, they may go, ‘Maybe that's not a great location. Do I really want to drive out there to go to a venue and leave there at 11 o'clock at night?’ and ‘How am I going to get out of there timely and efficiently and safely? I think they would be concerned if they really understood it.”

For more information about the Stop Fitzhugh Concert Venue Coalition, visit www.stopfitzhughconcertvenue.com.