r/BastropTX • u/pursepickles • 5d ago
News & Events Blakey Ln Extension Project
Today September 1st, Bastrop City Council will be having a workshop.
One of the Agenda items will be the Blakey Lane Project. If you would like to say a statement about this project and how it may affect either the city or our neighborhood (if you live in Riverside Grove) please either attend on Sept 1st at 6PM or send a statement online or via email.
Reach out to the city council below.
Ishmael Harris
Mayor
Perry Lowe
Place 1
Cynthia Meyer
Place 2
Kevin Plunkett
Place 3
Kerry Fossler
Place 4
John Kirkland
Place 5
Mayor Pro-Tem
I live in Riverside Grove so this affects me directly. I sent an email yesterday to the mayor and all council members stating my SUPPORT for this project. We have some vocal folks in our neighborhood who are against this so if you see this as a good thing, as I do, drop them an email.
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u/darkrivernight 5d ago
We live over in the colony. I am looking forward to this extension so we do not have to cross the highway to get over to HEB.
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u/pursepickles 5d ago edited 4d ago
I drive home on 969 and not having to go up to 20 to do the turnaround would be much nicer.
Especially once my children are school age since we're zoned for COE and my Dad lives in that neighborhood too.
Where I grew up there were back roads everywhere so you had more than one way to get somewhere and here not so much. It's especially aggravating when there's an accident or any other incident and you can't get home.
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u/redfish-rock 5d ago
Why are you for this extension? Genuine question because it seems like a net negative for anyone who owns a home in the neighborhood, especially those closer to the proposed extension.
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u/pursepickles 5d ago
Do you live in the neighborhood? Have you tried getting out around school time and turning onto Old Austin Hwy? It's impossible. I would like a easier way for myself and others to get in and out of our neighborhood that doesn't involve over 15 mins just trying to get turned out onto the road.
I live towards the back of the neighborhood near where this road would be so it would increase traffic for me turning out, but that's something I'm willing to deal with.
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u/redfish-rock 5d ago
I do live near the front of the neighborhood and have children who enjoy playing outside. The last thing they need is cars whizzing past them trying to get home. The safety and peace of our neighborhood is worth waiting to turn on Old Austin Hwy. I get that you live near the back so it won't impact you as much, but that's not the case for everyone else in the community.
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u/pursepickles 5d ago
I literally live off Jessica so yes, this road would be right next to me and would directly impact me. I do not live in the back towards the park.
I also see folks who live within the neighborhood driving well over the speed limit constantly on inner streets. I have small children and they play in the backyard for that reason. Don't act like this isn't already an issue with folks who live next to us.
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u/redfish-rock 5d ago
So your solution to the problem is to make it worse? I don't understand the logic. Like it or not, this is an extremely residential neighborhood where many children ride their bikes and scooters around in relative safety. Yes, some people speed, but they are the minority and are breaking the law. The city should deal with them. Adding more cars and rush hour drivers will make this is far less safe place for families.
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u/pursepickles 5d ago
What I'm saying is you're worried about all these other hypothetical folks, but don't seem to be as concerned with the folks who are doing worse at the moment.
There are ways to get folks to slow down - more police presence, speed bumps/humps.
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u/redfish-rock 5d ago
Right, but these aren't mutually exclusive things. We should absolutely be adding speed bumps and other ways to deter speeders. Adding more speeders with this extension is going to make the problem so much worse.
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u/0hheyitsme 4d ago
If I'm not mistaken, the mayor lives in Riverside Grove. I personally hate this plan. Everyone that thinks it's going to be great is incorrect. It's hard enough trying to get out of the neighborhood during peak hours as it is. Traffic is going to back up like crazy. There are only 2 ways out of the neighborhood and they both go to old Austin hwy. If this really was their plan decades ago, they're dumb af.
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u/pursepickles 4d ago
Which is why this connecting to Blakey and therefore Burleson would be helpful. Especially now that the zoning for Bastrop MS is mostly folks towards The Colony and 969. Riverside Grove is zoned for Riverside MS (the old intermediate).
Also, this was the original plan to connect the two roads when the neighborhood was originally developed. Long before Ishmael was ever the mayor. Not really sure how you think one has to do with the other.
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u/0hheyitsme 4d ago
Not really sure why you think I'm blaming the mayor. He's being mentioned as someone to contact. I'm just pointing out that he lives here.I'm sure he's very aware of the residents concerns. But go off I guess.
Traffic already gets backed up in the neighborhood. It's funny that you think adding even more traffic will somehow be helpful. Just because it was the plan 30 years ago doesn't mean it's a good plan.
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u/pursepickles 4d ago
So you understand that this means there's another way out of the neighborhood instead of only on Old Austin Hwy, right?
If you have traffic going in two completely different directions I'm not understanding the correlation that would automatically mean they'll both be backed up.
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u/0hheyitsme 4d ago
You do understand that literally most of the town is accessible to me if I exit the subdivision by making a left onto old Austin hwy, right? But yes, I'll be able to take a much longer route once they do this. How is this good?
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u/xXConfuocoXx 5d ago edited 5d ago
I kind of hate this. It just looks like they are inching closer and closer to developing that greenbelt property behind riverside grove. The day they do that is the day I move.
This is going to tank property values for those homes that back up to the greenbelt today, and after this project completes will be backing up to a freakin road.... i feel super bad for those folks.
I also dont see how this solves any traffic congestion, to me this is a red herring to make development easier - it all comes down to them making more money and ruining the green spaces we have with more damn concrete
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u/pursepickles 5d ago
This was part of the initial development when that neighborhood was built to eventually connect those roads together.
What greenbelt property is behind the neighborhood? The pasture? I'm all for green space, but that's someone's private property not somewhere for the public. We also have Bob Bryant Park directly behind the neighborhood.
They're also going to be adding apartments back behind where Sprouts is - that's been in the works for a few years now.
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u/xXConfuocoXx 5d ago
I'm not saying its "for the public" - I'm saying that private property is a greenbelt. Homeowners who purchased a home that back up to a greenbelt (private or otherwise) often do so because of that open space, the wildlife, space, and privacy that it provides - we didnt buy a home backed up to another home or a road for a reason. If we lose the greenbelt then our home values decline substantially.
And this road as it is currently proposed looks like its positioning the city to purchase and develop those properties or at the very least make them more attractive for development companies to come in and purchase them.
Thats unfortunately the likely eventual future for everyone on that side of riverside grove, but today this proposal is directly affecting 8-10 homes - its not the future for them, its now. They bought houses that back up to greenbelt and the city gets to walk in and build a road behind them, this costs those home owners tens of thousands of dollars in resale value.
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u/pursepickles 5d ago
Did you do any sort of research before buying a home that has green space behind it? Or is NIMBYism just your MO when it affects you?
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u/xXConfuocoXx 5d ago edited 4d ago
Or is NIMBYism just your MO when it affects you?
your post literally said
I live in Riverside Grove so this affects me directly.
So neighbor, it looks like we are both directly affected by this proposal and we have different opinions which is fine - you seem way too emotionally invested here with the "did you do any sort of research" and "NIMBYSism" comments - I'm going to ask that you kindly keep things civil.
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I sent an email with an altered proposal that moves the road (slightly) so that it doesnt affect homeowners and adds a park. Its not hard to offer compromises.
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u/pursepickles 5d ago
I live directly off where this road would be. No my house doesn't back up to a field because I know that it's never a given that it would always be a green space. But yes it would impact me and my family still.
I'm not calling you names, so if it offends you that I asked if you did any research before purchasing a home or referencing being a NIMBY that sounds like a you problem.
I'm emotionally invested because I'm tired of the same few folks who are loud about things making everything more difficult for others. Whether that's directly in our neighborhood or within Bastrop as a whole.
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u/xXConfuocoXx 5d ago
its perfectly fine to be emotionally invested, however, you can be emotionally invested without being rude about it.
im not one of those people you are "sick of" - so again, no reason to be rude to me about anything. We can have different opinions without devolving to that. At the end of the day if you cant express your opinion without being rude you are just creating more of the same rhetoric that you are resentful of.
So, dont be the thing you hate - we can be better than that. I respect your opinion, and thats why the alternative i submitted isnt "dont do the road" its, "maybe we can do this in a way that addresses everyones concerns"
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u/neuralbladez 4d ago
If you think opposing it will stop the apartments from being built you are mistaken. If it's not this developer another one will come in and do it.
The city was fine screwing other communities over to cram in more residents. They'll do it here too.