BASTROP COUNTY, Texas — During a Tuesday Bastrop City Council meeting, members decided to pause approving a zoning change request for the Gateway development project to address citizen concerns.
During public comment, a lot of residents said they want Bastrop city leaders to slow down before making such a big decision that could change the makeup of the city, impact traffic and more.
The developer, Place Design, requested to rezone the land to be able to incorporate a higher density mixture of buildings. It's on a 31-acre tract of land known as Bastrop Gateway, located near the northeast corner of State Highway 71 and State Highway 95.
As the plan stands now, the Gateway is intended to be a mixed-use, residential neighborhood that includes retail, town homes, senior facilities, a hotel, a community center, child care, trails and more.
Numerous residents spoke about concerns with increased traffic and the lack of actual affordable housing in the development plan.
"It feels disingenuous to talk about adding affordable house for people when these are obviously going to be luxury apartments," one resident said.
"Why rush and get this on a consent agenda when there were so many questions?" another resident asked.
Councilmember Jimmy Crouch said so far, he believes the developer has cooperated with all of the city's request, like moving the hotel down the hill. He said he hears people's concerns, but at the same time, the city needs the money to pay for things like its new wastewater treatment facility.
"If the development doesn't pay for it, then your taxes are going to go up and you're going to pay for it," Crouch said.
City leaders and the designers are going to take another look at this plan to incorporate amendments discussed during the meeting.
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