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2021
Volume 34, Issue 12
Liberty Hill transportation plan raises questions again
By MIKE EDDLEMAN Managing Editor The Liberty Hill City Council adopted the current transportation plan in May 2018, but this week questions arose among members of the current Council regarding what was in place and how to address creating a potential new plan. Council members were unsure of the status of the current plan or what had transpired since its adoption. “About a year ago someone had inadvertently posted the transportation plan on the City website, which resulted in a town hall meeting over at the Intermediate School which drew a lot of people,” said Council member Steve McIntosh. “It appears the transportation plan was out of date so I don’t know where we are with that. As far as I know we let go of the issue and it was not readdressed. I think we need to go back and do some housekeeping on that.” But the plan had been formally adopted and posted to the site with the intent to make it public, not an inadvertent posting. The Council discussed Monday the possibility of bringing in a representative from the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO) to give a presentation, but in January 2019 the Council voted in favor of entering an agreement with CAMPO to create an updated plan, even pledging $4,000 toward the agreement following a request by
See COUNCIL, Page 5
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BUSINESS
Yesterday to meet today in new development
By MIKE EDDLEMAN Managing Editor Tucked behind a barb-wire fence and some overgrown cactus is a portal to the past, hidden in the middle of Liberty Hill. Fort Tumbleweed – along SH 29 – is a mystery to many who have arrived in recent years, but if the vision shared by developers and current property owner Leonard Kubiak comes into focus, the property could become the epicenter of where the past meets the future in Liberty Hill. Kubiak has owned the 30acre property for 40 years, and he has collected pieces of history from all over Williamson County. Not just the three-dozen plus saddles, handful of wagons and buggies and countless items that each tell a story, but old buildings as well. Many of these buildings will form the bridge to the past when the new development takes shape. According to Realtor Nathan Pinson, the development will include retail, entertainment venues, dining options, a 120room hotel and more than 500 apartment units. “The ones buying it do apartments and townhomes in Colorado and they were looking for a Georgetown or Liberty Hill project,” he said. “When they saw this, and its proximity to the high school, they just wanted to build apartments here. Then when they got down here and saw all this history they said they wanted to keep this and do a retail front and mixed use type of project. (Kubiak) already had that vision. They liked it a lot and wanted to run with it. This is attractive to tenants for things like the brewery and dance hall.” Pinson expects the site work to begin in the summer after the sale closes, and that is expected
MIKE EDDLEMAN PHOTOS
(ABOVE) The Andice Saloon, built in the 1850s in Andice, was moved to Fort Tumbleweed years ago by property owner Leonard Kubiak. The 30-acre Fort Tumbleweed is soon to be the home of a mixed-use project that will incorporate a number of the historic buildings into the development. (RIGHT) Fort Tumbleweed property owner Leonard Kubiak (left) and Realtor Nathan Pinson stand on the porch of the old Round Rock Bank building that is part of the history that has been collected on the 30-acre property set for development soon. to take six months, followed by four to eight months of construction. There is a lot of interest in being a part of the project, and part of the plan includes a saloon, brewery and dance hall. “We have a tenant that wants to do a very high-end whiskey
saloon and pour whiskey and do craft cocktails in a really cool environment,” Pinson said, pointing to one of the old structures that will be refurbished on the property. “This is the Andice Saloon, built in the 1850s in Andice. (Kubiak) had the opportunity to buy it
Filing deadline Friday LHISD Board green for May 1 election
The deadline to file for a place on the May 1 ballot for Liberty Hill City Council or the LHISD Board of Trustees is Feb. 12. To date, 13 candidates have submitted applications. In the Liberty Hill ISD Board of Trustees race, Steve Messana and Michael Ferguson have both filed for Place 3, which is currently held by David Nix. Three candidates – Lockie Ealy, Aurora Trahan and Robert Baughn – have filed to run for Place 6, which is for one year to finish out former Trustee Vickie Peterson’s term after she resigned last month due to work obligations. Incumbents Kathy Major (Place 4) and Anthony Buck (Place 5) have both filed seeking reelection and neither has drawn an opponent to date. In the City Council election, all three places on the ballot are contested. Kim Sanders and Michael Helbing have both filed to run for Place 1, which is currently held by Steve McIntosh. Place 5 Council member Liz Rundzieher is seeking another term, but Angela Lynn Jones has filed to run against the in©2021 The Liberty Hill Independent
February 11, 2021 | 50 Cents
cumbent. Crystal Mancilla, is running against incumbent Gram Lankford in Place 3. Candidates can file to run until 5 p.m. Feb. 12. To file for City Council, candidates can download the application packet from the City website or pick one up from City Secretary Nancy Sawyer by appointment. Completed packets must also be dropped off by appointment due to current COVID-19 precautions. City Hall is located at 926 Loop 332 and the phone number is (512) 778-5449. In addition to the four School Board seats that will be on the ballot, the Board voted to move forward with a $491.7 million bond election that will appear on the ballot as four separate propositions. To pick up applications to file for a School Board seat, candidates should go to the LHISD Administration Building between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. to pick one up or one can be requested by mail. The Administration Building is located at 301 Forrest Street and the phone number is (512) 260-5580. The newspaper will hold a virtual candidate forum for all contested places for both Council and School Board in April.
lights bond election
By MIKE EDDLEMAN Managing Editor It’s official, a $491.7 million bond election is now in the hands of Liberty Hill ISD voters as the school board voted Monday to call the election May 1. After mulling the bond proposal submitted two weeks ago by the district’s Long Range Planning Committee, the Board of Trustees only made one change to the package, separating two stadium-related issues to broaden the choices for voters on that issue. Initially, the proposal was for three propositions, with the third being a combination of $6 million for a 5,000-seat expansion to Panther Stadium and $20 million for a new stadium to be built at the second high school. After a lengthy Board discussion, it was decided to split those so that voters would have a choice when deciding whether to approve one, both or neither of the projects. “I’m very proud of our Board and the conversations we had,” Superintendent Steve Snell said of the process. “That’s what they get elected to do is have tough conversations and really think through
the big ask we’re going to make of our community coming up on May 1.”
New schools The first proposition totals $457.7 million, and makes up most of the total bond package. It includes funds for new schools, campus renovations and expansions, planning funds for new campuses, land purchases and a variety of other infrastructure projects. The bulk of this proposition, though, is made up of new campuses. There is $86 million planned for two new elementary schools – $42 million for the first and $44 million for the second due to anticipated increases in construction costs. A third middle school is planned at $70 million, and then a second high school at $145 million. The ever-increasing price tag for new school buildings raises eyebrows in all communities when considering a bond election, but Casey Sledge, the district’s engineer managing the projects said there are multiple reasons the cost is so high. “The first issue, easily, is regulatory requirements,” he said. “There are many laws
See BOND, Page 10
and he moved it out here.” The pedestrian-friendly area will include water features, an expansive wrap-around deck with chairs, tables and rockers connecting the different businesses. Above a retail center with more dining and entertain-
ment options will be 12 Air B&B lofts, totaling 16,000 square foot retail space, with a 12,000-foot second story for the lofts. “(The retail portion) will have a fairground environment with
See TUMBLEWEED, Page 5
LHISD BOND ELECTION - MAY 1, 2021 PROPOSITION A, $457.7 MILLION:
• Construction of two new elementary schools – Elementary School #6 and #7 • Construction of new middle school – Middle School #3 • Construction of a new high school – High School #2 • Expansion and renovations at Liberty Hill Elementary and Louine Noble Elementary • Expansion and renovation of Liberty Hill Middle School – increase to 1,200 student capacity, CTE, Fine Arts, new roof, HVAC, and traffic flow improvements • Expansion of Santa Rita Middle School to 1,200 student capacity • Liberty Hill High School expansion to 2,400 student capacity, CTE, Fine Arts, locker rooms • Maintenance and Repair– HVAC, roofing and other maintenance repair needs • District-wide campus security – cameras, access control, front entry vestibules • Technology infrastructure • Expansion of transportation facility and purchase of new buses • Land acquisition and design for future schools
Proposition B, $8 million:
• Technology Devices for students and staff
Proposition C, $6 million:
• Liberty Hill High School Stadium expansion – additional 5,000 seat capacity and additional restrooms that are ADA compliant
Proposition D, $20 million:
• Stadium for New High School #2 – competition field, seating capacity for 10,000, press box, locker rooms, concession stand and restrooms, 8-lane track