The Buda Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously voted to recommend denial to City Council of a development agreement with MileStone Community Builders for a proposed 775-acre development in the Buda and Austin extraterritorial jurisdiction, or ETJ, July 26. City Council and the commission have received multiple presentations and held workshops with MileStone over the past six months regarding the development, which have been consistently met with criticism and concerns over traffic, congestion and safety. Concerns came from council, commissioners and residents; a Change.org petition was also created in opposition of the development, which garnered almost 1,000 signatures. The development proposal called for the creation of a public improvement district, or PID, and a tax increment reinvestment zone, or TIRZ, to help finance improvements and other projects throughout the development. The proposal also details a maximum of 2,100 homes, a dedicated 15 acres for an elementary school, 3.5 acres set aside for fire and emergency medical services, commercial and open spaces, and more. In order to sustain the proposed development, road improvements are also proposed throughout, including a road to connect FM 1626 and RM 976. However, one of the most discussed issues regarding the proposal is the existing traffic and congestion on RM 967; residents, council members and commissioners have expressed concerns over safety and the extra cars that 2,000 homes would add. Another concern, given that the development is split between Buda and Austin's ETJ, is that with denial of the agreement between MileStone and Buda, the developer is free to develop land outside the city limits, and the city could lose regulatory oversight, according to agenda documents. The city of Austin has agreed to release the acreage in the ETJ for Buda to expand into and to keep the development in one single jurisdiction if Buda agrees to provide water and wastewater services to the development. The commission's vote to recommend denial to the council was met with applause from residents and community members; however, it is still up to the council to approve or deny the development agreement.