Of the seven items, Proposition G is the only one placed on the ballot through a citizen-authored petition by the group Bee Cave Vote to Amend, which garnered over 320 resident signatures.
What's on the ballot
Per the ballot language, if passed, the proposition would:
- Require voter approval for the city to take any action or pass any ordinance addressing changes or transactions related to city owned real property.
- Require all deliberation of such action to be done in a public, open session.
- Not require voter approval of the city's purchase of real property, but require all details of such a purchase to be disclosed in a public, open session.
Proposition G was authored by Bee Cave resident Carrell Killebrew, who said the aim of the amendment is to increase city transparency surrounding land transactions.
Killebrew said the impetus for the petition came from several recent land deliberations that took place in closed session, most notably the discussion around adding a Hwy. 71 access road on the city-owned Brown Property, which remains the subject of ongoing litigation.
"As a taxpayer, I would like to know why we're spending money before we're spending money, and if that's a piece of land, I'd love to know why we're selling it and who we're selling it to," Killebrew said. "In a closed session, there's absolutely no public visibility."
The other side
Sara Marie Ridley, a community member and consultant for the political action committee A Better Bee Cave, said by requiring land transactions to take place in the public's view, the city may lose the power to effectively negotiate with potential buyers and sellers.
Additionally, Ridley said the voter-approval requirement could significantly slow down the process of land transactions by necessitating organized elections.
Jennifer Richter, a resident who lives off Hamilton Pool Road, said she is especially concerned that the proposition would impede the city's ability to create an access road from Hwy. 71 to HPR.
"I am a burn survivor and had first responders in my kitchen on the day of my accident contemplating if they needed to Life Flight me because of the traffic at that intersection," Richter said in a statement. "This area gridlocks every day with thousands of cars stuck in traffic without an alternative route."
The legality
Currently, the Texas Open Meetings Act dictates how and when a governing body conducts business in public or closed meetings.
Austin-based attorney Bill Aleshire, who helped craft the ballot language for Proposition G, said he believes the requirements of the amendment would not run contrary to the TOMA because of its provision allowing local governments to require open meetings in their charters.
Due to the upcoming election, the city of Bee Cave declined to comment on the feasibility or potential outcomes of Proposition G's passage.
In a statement, City Attorney Ryan Henry said "the city cannot change any language submitted by a valid citizen petition. If language submitted by a citizen petition is passed by the voters of Bee Cave, the City Council, based on advice from the City Attorney, then evaluate the legality and enforceability."
Henry also clarified that the city currently "follows and complies with the Texas Open Meetings Act," and "all decisions regarding land transactions are performed in open session."
What's next?
The election will take place Nov. 5, and early voting begins Oct. 21.
