Kyle Amends Transportation Master Plan

“As with many proposed projects on the CAMPO 2040 plan, the Blanco span bridge is in the conceptual stage,” Kyle City Manager Scott Sellers said.

Kyle City Council approved several proposed amendments to its Transportation Master Plan at its October 4 meeting. The Transportation Master Plan was updated and adopted by City Council on March 15, 2016.

During the Oct. 4 meeting, city council was asked to consider the adoption of five amendments. Here is a link to the agenda.

A brief explanation of each amendment is below:

Amendment #1 – Blanco River Span Bridge; the city has a contractual requirement to place this on our transportation plan based on the development agreement that was approved by City Council on May 3, 2016.
Amendment #2 – Kyle Parkway from Dacy Lane to Lehman Rd.; We are proposing a new route for the extension of Kyle Parkway, east of Dacy Lane, due to the fact that we will not be able to build any type of structure in the area of the reservoir. 
Amendment #3 – Rebel Road/RM 150 from Center St. to IH35 Southbound Frontage Road; The intent is to provide another connection to I35 with the possibility of providing an underpass/overpass across the railroad tracks.
Amendment #4 – Bebee Rd. connection from Seton Parkway to Kyle Parkway; The proposed route would provide a direct connection for any proposed development on the north side of Bunton Branch.
Amendment #5 – Seton Parkway South Extension; Seton Parkway, by Goodwill, is currently a dead end. As development begins south of the dead end, the intent is to provide a connection to the new section of Philomena.

Kyle Mayor Todd Webster said one of these amendments, the ‘Blanco River Span Bridge’, has recently been a topic of discussion among some pockets of groups within Hays County and beyond.

“It is unfortunate that there are anti-development special interests spreading misinformation about the planned bridge,” he said. “While it won’t be built for over a decade, it is important that Kyle now take the necessary steps to plan for the city’s future road needs.”  

Kyle’s Community Development Director, Howard Koontz, said, “The Blanco River span bridge is part of a development agreement (DA) between the City of Kyle and the Nance-Bradshaw Ranch.”

The Nance Ranch has been in the same family since the original land grant was received from Mexico in the mid-1800s. “They care about their family land and desire to be the best stewards of the land as possible,” Assistant City Manager James Earp said.

Kyle City Council approved this agreement in May 2016.

Koontz said the development agreement was discussed in Executive Session with council several times prior to it coming to the agenda for approval. The development agreement was filed with Hays County following approval; the documents have been on the county’s website since that time.*

“Council also discussed the issue in open session before taking a vote,” Koontz said.

City records show that the landowners applied for voluntary annexation in February 2016; the city annexed the property, consisting of several thousand acres, in June of that same year. Koontz said the city published legal notices and notified affected neighbors and landowners in accordance with state law regarding the annexation.

“The owners of the Nance-Bradshaw Ranch, private property in the western part of Hays County, propose to develop a master-planned community that may include single family, multi-family, commercial and office sites along with recreational facilities, public parks, open space and space for public use,” Koontz said. “According to the DA, development on this land shall not exceed 9,000 living unit equivalents.”

Within that agreement, the city agreed to amend its Transportation Master Plan to include the roads necessary to provide sufficient access to the property to reasonably accommodate traffic when the project is completely built out. Current access to the property includes a low water crossing that is subject to flooding and not suitable for most vehicles otherwise.

Leon Barba, city engineer, said, “The City of Kyle submitted an application on August 3 to the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO) to include the proposed Blanco Span Bridge in the 2040 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP). The submittal description read, ‘A bridge spanning the property over the Blanco River is also part of the DA. Multi?lane span bridge, including a pedestrian/bike lane, starting at the elevated western Blanco River bank to a new road connecting to Hilliard Road.’”

Assistant City Manager, James Earp, said CAMPO staff mistakenly placed it on the agenda for TIP funding. “We didn’t ask CAMPO for public funding. Our application was simply to add it to the RTP,” he said. The application required a cost estimate, Earp said, and city staff used figures from bridges over I-35 as a baseline.

CAMPO held an open comment period from August 21 to September 21, 2017 with open houses held throughout the region between August 21 and September 6 2017. A public hearing was held at the Transportation Policy Board on September 11, 2017.

“As with many proposed projects on the CAMPO 2040 plan, the Blanco span bridge is in the conceptual stage,” Kyle City Manager Scott Sellers said. “There are no plans to even let a contract out until approximately 2025. The bridge is a line on a map at this point and would need to go through the engineering and design process prior to any construction.”

Earp explained that part of the Nance Ranch is over the recharge area for the Edwards Aquifer.

“Any development or construction in that area will be protected and develop according to the state laws and rules of the Edwards Aquifer Authority, which is precisely why they have rules in place to allow development,” he said.

Community Development Director Koontz said, “Should the project move forward, the City of Kyle will comply with all state requirements and regulations regarding environmental protections, which may include studies to determine any adverse impact to the local environment, including any impact down river.”

The intention is to design a tension span bridge that would not have footings in the river and would not affect the water flow, Assistant City Manager Earp said.

“It would be high enough in elevation to be traversable during any flood event, including the most recent 500+ year events that the basin experienced. We desire to design a bridge over the Blanco that will serve the Western portion of the Nance Ranch, and possibly those neighbors beyond if interconnectivity can be managed. That bridge will serve as a life line to those that need a way to cross the Blanco and other low water crossings, to access grocery stores, work or medical facilities during times of severe flash flooding.”

He added that it would also help emergency services that need to get into the future development.

Howard Koontz reiterated, “The City of Kyle will ensure that any project in our city limits meets all applicable laws and is in line with environmental regulations. Our goal is to engage in responsible development that benefits the city overall as well as its residents and businesses.”

Visit the City of Kyle’s Fact or Fiction page for additional information.