After months of deliberation about The Colony at Cole Springs development, city council members have annexed the project on a first but not final reading.
The overall development gave council members pause during its first phases, where they questioned bridge costs and its permit approvals, development zoning, increased traffic concerns, water and wastewater, land acquisitions and more. After the developers worked through the main issues and met the city’s standards, city council agreed to annex the development, its zoning ordinance and the Municipal Utility District.
Cole Springs developers say they have a lot to offer Buda at no cost to the city, such as adding a bridge that alleviates traffic, a traffic signal along FM 967, donating parklands and trails above what is required and paying $700,000 toward realigning Old Black Colony Road.
Mark Baker, principal at SEC Planning, said that the easy access from the development to downtown Buda will increase business revenue. Building the development will also create job opportunities; these two benefits can alleviate some damage created by the coronavirus, Baker told council members.
What Cole Springs offers seems to have many overall benefits to the city, but council member Terry Cummings said one of her concerns is the additional taxes residents will pay, which are endemic to a MUD.
One Austin resident and landowner in Buda, Margaret Mills, said her property is adjacent to Cole Springs, but she received no official notification from the city about the development. She is concerned that The Colony at Cole Springs will disrupt wildlife that has been roaming freely on her property and beyond. Mills also expressed worry that construction work will erode the land, especially at the drop-off that borders her property.
Buda City Attorney George E. Hyde said the city has taken all legal precautions according to the public statutory requirement for public notice. The statutory requirement says that everyone within 200 feet of the development who is on Buda’s tax roll must be notified. But Mills is not a resident of Buda, therefore they are not legally required to give her a notice.
As for Mills’ environmental and geological concerns, the developers have to abide by Buda’s regulations. Melissa McCollum, director of planning, said the developer is aware they will have to remediate the site.
After the developers addressed the city’s major concerns, especially questions about the bridge, assuring the city will not be financially liable, annexing the development got a 6-1 vote.
There will be room to make more amendments, something that council members will discuss during their June 2 meeting. But for the time being, The Colony at Cole Springs has been zoned in R-3 and F-4 and in Buda’s MUD number one.
