Roxanne McKee, a 20-year Rollingwood resident and two-term alderwoman, was sworn into the office of mayor Nov. 16, taking over for retiring Mayor Thom Farrell, who served a total of four terms at various times since 1998.
McKee initially moved to the Austin area from Corpus Christi to study government at The University of Texas. She also attended law school at UT, and after graduating, moved to Washington, D.C., to work for the Justice Department, she said. She then moved to Michigan and worked at as a litigation lawyer at Dykema Gossett, the largest law firm in the state at the time, she said.
In 1989, McKee moved back to Austin to live closer to her family, and again worked for the Justice Department, this time focusing on civil litigation at the U.S. Attorney’s Office. When it came time for McKee, her husband and her first son to find a permanent home in the area, they were told by an acquaintance that Rollingwood was “a diamond in the rough,” McKee said.
“We had a child and were planning to have [another] so schools were very important for me, and my husband works at UT and wanted a short commute,” McKee said. “We came over to look at Rollingwood and saw these large lots, a lot of trees and Eanes ISD was excellent. We had also rowed on Lady Bird Lake for many years, so being able to take a bike over there or to Lake Austin, we though this would be a great location for us,” she said.
They purchased a lot 22 years ago, built a home on it and still live there today, she said.
Serving the community
McKee was asked to serve on Rollingwood’s Park Commission in 2006, her first official position for the city. In 2008, residents asked her to join the Planning and Zoning Commission, and in 2009, she was again approached about pursuing a City Council seat.
“A whole bunch of people asked me to run,” McKee said. “It was something I might have had in the back of my mind because I’m a strong believer in public service, but it wasn’t necessarily something I strived for.”
Her first term on City Council was from 2009-11. At the time, Rollingwood had just eliminated the city administrator position, and turnover at the pubic works and finance director positions put more of a burden on the council, she said. With her youngest son still living at home and a job at Texas Legal Service Center and, McKee said she it was difficult maintaining her family obligations while attending late-night council meetings, and she decided not to run for re-election.
However, she ran again in 2014 and rejoined the council.
“I was only working part-time; the city was fully staffed—they had a city administrator again—so it seemed like it would be a more conducive environment,” she said. “I knew Thom Ferrell was going to run for mayor, and he was focused on issues like drainage that I thought were important.”
Moving forward
McKee said drainage will remain one of the city’s top priorities while she is mayor, and passing a drainage ordinance and criteria manual in November was just the start.
“The ordinance sets a groundwork for us and helps us address future problems from construction,” McKee said. “It’s a start, but there have been some longstanding drainage issues that still need to be addressed.”
Under Farrell’s leadership, the city began a number of projects related to drainage, including replacing a culvert under Hatley Drive, and McKee said she hopes to see those projects through while beginning to fix others in the area.
“Thom is an Energizer Bunny,” she said. “There was a lot that he wanted to get accomplished, and we have a lot of projects that are underway that he just wasn’t able to get done before he left.”
Other construction projects outside of Rollingwood will also take some of the council’s focus during her first term as mayor, McKee said.
The multiyear Bee Caves Road expansion project officially broke ground in November and will add a middle turn lane through neighboring West Lake Hills. McKee said the construction could increase the number of motorist and cut-through traffic that travel through Rollingwood and impact residents who travel on Bee Caves Road. The city could also look at acquiring the necessary right of way to extend the future turn lane through Rollingwood, although that would be years away, she said.
Similarly, the imminent MoPac South project could potentially alter traffic patterns and the overall aesthetic of Rollingwood, she said.
“MoPac South is going to change a lot,” McKee said. “It’s hard to predict what changes might come from that so it is going to take a lot of our attention, and we’re trying to make some movement on that front.”
At her first meeting as mayor, McKee reiterated that the city opposes aspects of the MoPac South project that would bring elevated lanes over the Colorado River and Bee Caves Road.
