Staff Report
KYLE – City leaders say they will move forward on road improvements after Kyle residents passed a $294.4 million transportation bond package during the Nov. 8 general election.
The bond aims to provide critical transportation projects that will decrease congestion and improve overall safety and mobility in the city through a series of eight projects that total 10.3 miles.
Proposition A includes the following projects:
• Bebee Road, $67.1 million, 2.8 miles: Realign the sharp curves of Bebee Road between I-35 and Sunlight Boulevard and upgrade Bebee between I-35 and Goforth Road to a four-lane minor arterial road east of the Seton Parkway extension.
• Bunton Creek Road, $28.7 million, 2.1 miles: Straighten the curves along Bunton Creek Road between Dacy Lane and Goforth Road. The proposed road is a four-lane minor arterial road and roundabouts will be installed at Lehman and Goforth.
• Center Street, $10.2 million, 0.4 miles: Full reconstruction of Center Street from Veterans Drive to Main Street to a three-lane minor curbed arterial road and implementation of intersection upgrades at Veterans Drive and Burleson Street, storm drain, sidewalk, illumination and water/wastewater replacement and overhead electric conversion to underground.
• Kohler’s Overpass to Seton, $70.4 million, 2.1 miles: Extend Seton Parkway from north of Ascension Seton Hays Hospital to Kohlers Crossing across I-35 and add a four-lane arterial road north of Bebee Road and a three-lane collector road south of Bebee.
• Kyle Parkway/Lehman extension, $42.6 million, 1.3 miles: Extend Lehman Road northeast of Bunton Creek Road and connect to Dacy Lane and extend Kyle Parkway from Dacy Lane to this new segment. Both proposed roads will be four-lane minor arterial roads.
• Marketplace Avenue, $11.3 million, 0.6 miles: Connect the northern and southern segments of Marketplace Avenue by adding a new roadway from Old Bridge Trail to Marketplace Avenue with a four-lane minor arterial road.
• Old Stagecoach Road ($29 million) and Center Street ($12.4 million) to RM 150, 2.2 miles: Implement improvements to Old Stagecoach Road and Center Street, including intersection upgrades, storm drain, sidewalk, illumination and water/wastewater replacement and overhead electric conversion to underground.
• Windy Hill Road, $15.1 million, 0.6 miles: Add capacity from the I-35 frontage road to Purple Martin Avenue. The roadway section will include two lanes in each direction with a center turn lane and a roundabout is proposed at the Cherrywood intersection.
“This is a historic step for the city of Kyle,” Mayor Travis Mitchell said in a news release. “Kyle voters made it clear they want us focused on improving traffic, safety and mobility throughout the city. With the passage of Proposition A, we intend to honor the trust of the community and get to work on these projects.”
Interim City Manager Jerry Hendrix said he will convene engineers and planners as early as the coming week to begin work on implementing the bond package.
“Council knew this was an urgent issue for our residents and had the vision to put this bond package forward to the voters,” Hendrix said. “The city council and staff have laid a strong planning foundation so we could respond quickly and efficiently to the results of the election — whatever they were. Now we’re ready to get to work right away on these important projects for the city of Kyle.”
It will take time to begin selling the bonds and begin acquiring right-of-way, according to the city, but officials said they will continue to make progress on planning and engineering designs in the meantime.
Plans for public meetings when Kyle residents can express their opinions about roadway design are underway and updates about these projects will be available at https://www.kylebonds.com/.
