Hwy. 79 & Mays Street

Hwy. 79 & Mays Street

Wednesday, 07 November 2007

Hwy. 79 and Mays Street is one of the busiest intersections in Williamson County and may be a future site of Round Rock redevelopment.

Transportation

1. The City of Round Rock Transportation Department has future plans to remove the median break between Northwest Drive and Old Bowman Road in the next six months.

2. The city will build a new entrance for the Texas Baptist Children’s Home. This will also allow a stop light to connect the new entrance and Northwest Drive.

3. The city will place double-turn lanes on all legs of the intersection. This will take place over the next two to three years.

4. North Mays from Old Bowman Road will be widened to the bridge after Sunset Drive.

5. The Texas Department of Transportation is conducting a study on the traffic patterns near Hwy 79. Under consideration is a possible flyover that will arch IH-35 from Hwy. 79 to RM 620 at Deepwood Drive.

History

6. The First United Methodist Church of Round Rock was established in 1879 but did not move to its current location on the corner of Hwy. 79 and Mays Street until 1986. The original 6.9 acres of land was owned by Washington Anderson of Williamson County. Anderson was married in 1838 to Mary Ann Glascock. They had one daughter. Anderson, who was a devout Baptist, built a house for his only daughter who married the First Baptist Church preacher of Williamson County. Today the First United Methodist Church of Round Rock owns 10 acres and has 4,000 members.

7. The Texas Baptist Children’s Home was established in 1950 when Mr. and Mrs. Louis Henna Sr. donated 112 acres of land and five newly-constructed buildings (three cottages, an administration building and a superintendent’s residence) to the Baptist General Convention of Texas for the purpose of establishing the Texas Baptist Children’s Home. For more than 50 years, Texas Baptist Children’s Home has provided a haven for children and families in crisis.

Source: www.tbch.org

Future Land Use

8. Ideas are being presented on the commercially zoned property where the old H-E-B is located, ranging from redevelopment of the existing buildings to multiple-story office space.