Bee Cave to assume control of state highway traffic signals
Operation and maintenance of existing traffic signals on Hwy. 71, RM 620 and RM 2244 that fall within Bee Cave city limits will be taken over from the Texas Department of Transportation following a unanimous decision from Council at the meeting.
During their June 28 regular meeting, council initially approved the agreement with TxDOT. The new resolution allows City Manager Clint Garza to execute an agreement with the department.
While maintenance on the traffic signals will be conducted by the city, in conjunction with contractors, the state of Texas will reimburse any incurred costs on the signals for a flat rate of $90,552 per year.
There are four state highways that either surround or run through the city of Bee Cave.
While some of the existing signal maintenance work is contracted out by the state, there is a direct line of communication between residents and city staff that does not exist between residents and TxDOT, city officials said.
Staff feels it is “appropriate to partner with the state to take on this role in an effort to provide exceptional service to our residents and guests while maintaining the strong partnership with our area [TxDOT] representatives,” according to city documents.
Under Texas Government Code 79, local governments can contract with one another and with state agencies for the provision of governmental functions and services.
“I think this community is very ready for [the city of Bee Cave] to take over the signals; I know I’m personally ready for y’all to take over the signals,” Bee Cave Mayor Kara King said.
Preliminary plat for Sanctuary at Spanish Oaks development approved by Council
A preliminary plat for an undeveloped 21.80-acre tract located at 13025 Flowering Senna Bend, Austin, was approved during the meeting.
Once developed, the tract, called Sanctuary at Spanish Oaks, will include a 10-lot subdivision with eight large single-family lots, one private street lot and one drainage/open space lot, according to city documents.
The future development for Sanctuary at Spanish Oaks is located south of the Shops at the Galleria and north of the Spanish Oaks Golf Club, according to city documents.
The land for the Sanctuary at Spanish Oaks was annexed as part of a larger 92.425-acre tract owned by Synchro Realty LLC during the city’s June 28 City Council meeting.
Preliminary plats are submitted to city governments to show a map and features of a proposed subdivision. A final plat will need to be presented to council before construction can begin.
Council approves use of hotel occupancy funds for Special Olympics Texas 2023
Council unanimously approved $200,000 in hotel occupancy funds for Special Olympics Texas 2023 during the meeting.
This will be the second year in a row Special Olympics Texas is requesting hotel occupancy funds from Bee Cave; the organization was approved for $100,000 from the city for the 2022 Special Olympics.
Special Olympics Texas is scheduled for Feb. 17-19 and will bring necessary revenue to Sonesta Bee Cave, Austin, General Manager John Dallas said.
“February for us, historically, is not a very busy month from an occupancy standpoint,” Dallas said. “Occupancy ranges from 30% to as much as 50%-60% in the best years.”
The weekend before the Special Olympics last February, Sonesta was at 50% occupancy, he said; however, the weekend of the event, they were at 100% occupancy and sold out for Friday and Saturday night.
“From a sheer revenue standpoint, that was over $85,000 of room revenue for the weekend,” Dallas said.
Bee Cave Mayor Kara King said she was concerned that Special Olympics Texas was requesting the same amount of hotel occupancy tax revenue from Bee Cave as from Lakeway, as Lakeway has more hotel space for olympic participants to use.
“We are asking for double, because we have double the amount of participation, double the amount of days, double the amount of venues and double the hotel nights needed,” said Chad Eason, Special Olympics Texas' senior director of competitions and games.
Eason also said that while Lakeway has more hotel space than Bee Cave, the games would primarily take place in Bee Cave; as a result, most of the event-goers' money spent on food, drinks and shopping that weekend would be in Bee Cave.
