Megan Navarro
DRIPPING SPRINGS — Dripping Springs City Council is looking at upgrading the wayfinding signage system throughout the city.
Wayfinding signs help residents and visitors locate downtown, historic areas, parks and more, as well as promote walkability and connectivity across the city, according to a presentation made by people and communications director Lisa Sullivan during the July 15 city council meeting.
The city has identified a need for a cohesive wayfinding signage system as part of an effort to enhance visitor experience, support local businesses and improve traffic flow and connectivity. These signs would help guide residents and visitors to important destinations across the city.
This project has been in the works since 2021; however, due to transitions from different people leaving the city, it’s been difficult to get it off the ground until now.
“It’s been something that’s been requested by businesses and everyone, [including] the former tourism bureau,” Sullivan said. “In 2025, we decided to make it a priority and I took it over as the tourism person because before I retire, I want to make sure this is one of the things I get done.”
City staff has reviewed similar programs in other cities and has been working with Studio 16:19 on design and implementation, who also worked on the park signage, so the designs will complement each other and follow the brand guidelines. The final design was also approved by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) last month.
The two-phase project includes wayfinding signs as the initial part of the larger scope for upgraded signage across Dripping Springs. The city estimates the cost would be $7,000 per sign, Sullivan said, with half of the funding in the 2024-25 approved Hotel Occupancy Tax budget, while the other half is in the proposed 2025-26 budget.
The second phase would be the installation of upgraded monument signage similar to what was newly-constructed outside of city hall.
Council member Geoffrey Tahuahua shared his concerns about the visibility of the signs as they are currently designed, noting that it may be difficult to see them, especially at night when Dripping Springs is already a Dark Sky community.
“Their purpose, which is directional, will be lessened by the fact that you really won’t be able to see it. I think that the color scheme doesn't necessarily lend to that either because I think the white at night will especially bleed into that green, versus if you had a navy base with a white, and maybe you made the white reflective, kind of like how our monument sign is,” he said.
Mayor Bill Foulds and other council members on the dais also raised concerns on text visibility, colors and the height of the signs, which is currently proposed to be at least 13 feet.
“To me, these stand out in a way that I don’t know complements our community. Like our historic districts, for example, to me, if we put something that bright and blue and green, it’s like way more attention-getting — and I know the purpose of signs is to be seen, so I hear the stupidity of what I am saying. But I am not sure it blends,” shared council member Taline Manassian. “Like the park signs we’ve done, those are very visible and they blend. This doesn’t blend to me. It just speaks sign … There's something about them that is a little too much.”
Manassian continued to state that signs need to be a little more understated than what the designs show: “These are adorable. I am not sure that it’s consistent with the old, historic Dripping Springs.”
Sullivan responded, saying that local business owners requested for there to be more colorful and brighter signage rather than the current brown signs.
Council requested for Sullivan and Studio 16:19 to work with Manassian and council member Sherrie Parks to take another look at the current designs, while also incorporating council feedback. However, new designs will still need to be approved by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to make sure the signs abide by regulations.
The signage project will be brought back to city council at a future meeting held Sept. 2.
To listen to Dripping Springs City Council meetings, visit drippingsprings-tx.municodemeetings.com.
