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Below is a roundup of development updates out of Leander and Liberty Hill from February.
Leander adds voting space to senior center, selects furniture vendor
Leander’s Senior Activity Center is expected to open in Summer 2025, and as of city council’s Feb. 20 meeting, it’s set to include a voting center.
Council approved a $9,250 amendment to the city’s contract with architecture firm PGAL to provide for redesign services for the project.
Two-minute impact
The Feb. 20 amendment addressed flex space in the center, ordering the redesign of space originally set aside for a child advocacy group so it can be used as a voting center, according to agenda documents.
What else?
Also on Feb. 20, council voted to award a $381,566.52 contract to Indoff, LLC to provide furniture, fixtures and equipment for the activity center, according to agenda documents.
Read the full story here.
Liberty Hill needs to up water supply to avoid shortages
Liberty Hill’s 2025 Water Master Plan showed the city could see water shortages if it does not bolster infrastructure.
The plan assessed the future water needs for the city from 2025-2050, showing the city could see water shortages “within the next couple of years,” said Zach Stein, who presented a summary of the plan to Liberty Hill City Council.
Council voted to accept the city’s 2025 Water Master Plan at its Feb. 12 meeting.
The takeaway
Stein said current water demands are projected to increase by 12% per year for the next 10 years and then increase 16% per year through 2050, when ultimate buildout of the city’s current service area is expected to be completed.
Liberty Hill currently gets its water from four active groundwater wells pulling from the Trinity Aquifer, as well as from a contract for surface water from Lake Travis, according to the plan.
The water is treated by the City of Leander before being delivered to Liberty Hill’s distribution system.
Liberty Hill does not own a water treatment facility, according to the plan.
What else?
Stein said Liberty Hill needed to up its water supply by a factor of five to meet the projected needs for 2050.
Read the full story here.
Liberty Hill increases water impact fees
Liberty Hill City Council approved an increase to water impact fees Feb. 12.
The two-minute impact
The vote raised the fees from $7,037 per living unit equivalent to $9,065 per LUE, according to agenda documents. Impact fees are one-time charges paid by developers to finance the construction of public facilities needed to service their new developments.
The change went into effect Feb. 13.
How we got here
In January 2024, council appointed a Capital Improvements Advisory Committee to review and advise City Council on infrastructure improvements to be funded by impact fees, according to the documents.
At its Dec. 3 meeting, the CIAC voted to recommend council adopt the new fee amount.
Read the full story here.
Leander City Council makes room for residential project off CR 175
Leander City Council on Feb. 6 cleared the way for a proposed residential development on roughly 20.6 acres off CR 175.
Council approved the needed future land use and zoning amendment cases, changing the zoning from employment center to neighborhood residential and from single family rural to single family estate, according to agenda documents.
Dig deeper
The amendment requests were made in anticipation of a residential development project at 621 CR 175, Leander, according to a letter of intent.
The letter, from Dannen Real Estate Development, said the property is well suited for a large lot residential subdivision.
Quote of note
Council member Chris Czernek clarified the move will not set a new standard for the city.
“This council has been very very adamant about saving every commercial piece we can, but when you add everything up here, and the schools that are going across the way and everything else that’s around that property, it really does make sense there,” he said.
Read the full story here.
