Marina Armendariz
BUDA — Buda City Council approved updated design standards for the city’s historic district and tabled a proposal to change the designated use of portions of three park properties for the Old Black Colony Road project during its Oct. 20 meeting.
Following a recommendation from the Historical Preservation Commission and a council workshop held May 19, the city moved forward with revisions to its historic district guidelines to reflect a broader range of architectural styles and establish preservation expectations based on the significance of individual buildings. According to council documents, the guidelines are intended to preserve historic building features and the overall character of downtown, while facilitating redevelopment and continued economic activity in the area.
The previous historic design guidelines were adopted in 2013 and were based on architectural styles identified in the city’s first historic survey in 1992. After a new historic survey was adopted in 2024, the city began updating the guidelines to account for additional architectural styles and better reflect the district’s historic resources.
Emily Payne with HHM & Associates, who discussed the updated standards with council, said the guidelines were developed to balance preservation with the practical needs of downtown businesses.
“Buda has a wonderful, vibrant, economically viable downtown. We don’t want guidelines that are so strict that businesses can't continue to operate,” Payne said. “The guidelines encourage rehabilitation and adaptive reuse. They don’t stop you from making changes to the building that keep them in use. They focus on preserving the overall setting and feeling of the district as a whole and allow treatments that keep the buildings comfortable, efficient and affordable.”
Assistant director of Development and Services Will Parrish said the revised standards distinguish between regulatory requirements and recommendations based on the preservation priority of each historic building.
Rather than applying the same expectations to every property within the historic district, the guidelines tailor preservation treatments to the historical significance of individual structures. The approach is intended to help protect the district’s defining characteristics, while allowing appropriate changes to buildings with different levels of historical significance.
Parrish also said the updated standards will not take effect until Jan. 1, 2027. The delay gives property owners and applicants time to submit applications and continue working under the existing guidelines before the new standards take effect.
Council approved the standards and recommendations in a 6-0 vote. Council member Matt Smith was not in attendance.
Council also held a required public hearing on a proposed change of use involving three park properties that would provide right-of-way and public utility easements needed for the Old Black Colony Road project.
According to city documents, the proposal affects approximately 0.42 acres of Whispering Hollow Homeowner Association parkland, 2.40 acres of Whispering Hollow Park and 1.07 acres of Summer Pointe Park. Together, the properties account for approximately 3.89 acres.
The proposed change would allow portions of the properties to be used for right-of-way and public utility easements associated with the road project.
The proposal raised concerns about the use of designated parkland for transportation and utility infrastructure. Council member LaVonia Horne-Williams acknowledged those concerns during the discussion, saying the city was attempting to balance the need for the road with the potential effects on surrounding properties and parkland.
“I understand that there is concern and that citizens are worried about the parkland component, some of that property being utilized as right-of-way and for public utilities,” Horne-Williams said. “What we are trying to mitigate is harm on either side and still be able to build a road that everybody wants.”
At the request of city staff, council tabled the item until its Dec. 1 meeting to allow additional time for public notice. The proposal is expected to return for further consideration at that meeting.
The next Buda City Council meeting will be at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 4.
