The background
In late March, the city denied a preliminary plat and partially denied a “grandfathering” or “vested rights” application for the development, Jodie Smith, who owns the property with her husband Tom Leibowitz, told Community Impact in an email.
“We have appealed the March 28 partial denial of the grandfathering application to the city manager, which is the process laid out in the city ordinance,” Smith said. “We are waiting on a response from the city manager.”
Diving in deeper
Smith highlighted how the disagreement with city officials largely stems from whether Article 1.20 of the Bastrop Municipal Code, which the city amended earlier this year, applies to the North End Prairie development.
For Smith, who cited Texas Local Government Code Chapter 245, the answer is simple.
“State law protects developments from cities changing the rules on them mid-stream,” she said. “The law says that developments can be approved under the regulations that were in place when the project began.”
Instead of applying the regulations that were in place in August 2022 when the North End Prairie development submitted its first permit, Smith said a newer set of rules were set in motion—a decision North End Prairie developers have since appealed.
“The first step is for the city to abide by state law and review this project on the regulations that were in place when the project was started in August 2022,” Smith said. “After that, we will pick back up with the preliminary plat.”
Also of note
Heather Green, a Bastrop resident who neighbors the North End Prairie development, is among the voices against the project.
“Every person whose property touches this development, and many more throughout our neighborhood, have made it clear,” she said in a social media post. “We do not want this development as it stands.”
Green also spoke during a town hall meeting at Bastrop City Hall earlier this year, where she listed concerns, including:
- No clear parking plan
- No approved drainage system
- Lack of transparency
Smith, council member Kerry Fossler’s sister, previously stressed how the North End Prairie development is a mission-driven project, as it would provide affordable housing based on a model developed by HomeBase.
“We formed a nonprofit organization, the Homes for Good Foundation, that will carry this work forward,” she said in March.
Although Fossler spurred the idea for the North End Prairie development, she noted how she stepped away from the project after she was elected in May 2024. She began to recuse herself from discussing the North End Prairie development in February.
