Sam Bass Road • Round Rock

Sam Bass Road • Round Rock

Monday, 07 January 2008

With the historical significance of the area and new development soon on its way, Sam Bass Road will be the focus for our corridor this month.

Transportation

1. The Texas Department of Transportation is in the process of conducting a study on the RM 620 Corridor with Toll 45 and IH 35. This study will help them to decide if a possible flyover from RM 620 to Hwy. 79 would be a good option to help the congested traffic.

2. The City of Round Rock is in the planning stages of widening the intersection of Sam Bass Road and Chisholm Trail Road to help the flow of traffic. Their plans include making the section between IH 35 and Chisholm Trail Road a four-lane road way with two lanes heading east and two lanes heading west. It would also include a dedicated right and left turn lane onto Chisholm Trail Road.

3. The city will make improvements on the section between Galloping Road to Chisholm Trail Road. This will become a four-lane roadway with dedicated right and left turn lanes. Plans are made to update the city’s wastewater, curb and gutter infrastructure, along with utilities, from Chisholm Trail to Galloping Road for residents and businesses in the area. Construction on these projects is expected to be completed by November 2009.

4. The city is also in discussion with Union Pacific Railroad to add two gates heading west on Sam Bass and one gate heading east on Sam Bass.

Future Land Use

5. The corner of Meadows Drive East and Sam Bass Road will be the location of the new Sam Bass Market Center. The 26,755 sq. ft. of office and retail flex-space with 6,000 sq. ft. of dedicated restaurant or coffee shop use is expected to be completed by April. It will include a total of four buildings. Developers have spoken with a few local vendors and restaurants as potential tenants but names cannot be disclosed at this time. Please contact Ben Bailey with B.A. Bailey Company at 402-9050 for more information.

Business

6. Trendsetter Electronics headquarters is located on 1910 Sam Bass Road. Trendsetter Electronics has been in business since 1995 but did not move to their Sam Bass location until February 2003. They distribute components that are designed for applications in the most extreme oil and gas equipment, instrumentation and military environments.

7. Red Onion Market opened its business on Sam Bass Road in December of 2006. It provides a variety of groceries and deli sandwiches and will soon be opening another location in Cedar Park.

Old Round Rock Cemetery

8. A.W Grimes, a lawofficer who confronted the Sam Bass gang and was killed in Round Rock, is buried in the cemetery.

An uneducated Indiana orphan who drifted to Texas as a youth, Sam Bass won fame racing his swift “Denton Mare,” gambling, and robbing trains. A rich haul in Nebraska was followed by months of reckless spending. Bass liked to shower gold on people who fed or harbored him while he eluded law officers. In July 1878, he came to Round Rock to rob a bank, and was shot by Texas Rangers. He became a hero to 19th century balladeers and a popular character in Western movies. He is also buried in the cemetery.

A slave cemetery is in the northwest corner.

Source: Sam Bass Historical Marker. www.forttours.com/pages/hmwilliamson.asp#Bass