Town center concept will enrich quality of life

Town center concept will enrich quality of life

Written by Cathy Kincaid Tuesday, 07 March 2006

Central Texas leaders address growth pressures

It’s no secret that Central Texas is growing rapidly. Experts predict more than 1.5 million people will be moving into the area in the next 20-40 years. Both cities are taking active roles in planning residential development now to ensure a rich quality of life for its residents. A new model being considered in both Round Rock and Pflugerville is the town center.

Southwest Downtown Plan

According to Jim Stendebach, Planning Director, the town center concept is an ongoing point of interest for Round Rock.

“We have created a new zoning district we are calling the Southwest Downtown Center,” Stendebach said. “It involves conversion of existing homes into offices. Eventually, though, there will be townhouses and ground floor retail/upstairs residential properties built to accommodate a denser development of the area.”

After a year and a half of groundwork by the Planning Department and property owners, the city created a new zoning district which includes the area south of Round Rock Ave., east of IH35 and west of Mays. Stendebach said that the final development could take up to five years to complete.

“We also will be building a town center up by the University [Round Rock Higher Education Center] in the next two years,” Stendebach said. “There’s a big, flat plot of empty land out there which makes it easy to build on.”

What is a Town Center

The center will be geared for the student atmosphere with shops and restaurants at the ground level and residential upstairs along with townhouses.

Scott Polikov is the project manager for the University town center and a town planner for Gateway Planning. He is passionate about the town center concept.

“The 600 acres located next to RRHEC will create a traditional mixed use center similar to what you find around any major university such as Harvard or University of Texas.”

Shops, restaurants, parkways, mixed use buildings are part of the community feeling Polikov describes when discussing town centers.

“Just because a commercial area calls itself a town center,” Polikov said, “does not mean it is a town center. We create enduring, generational communities. To create a real town center takes years to develop, but it lasts through the centuries. In a town center, people at any stage in life can live, play, shop in areas designed with walkways and easily accessible to transit systems.”

Envision Central Texas

Jan.17, the Pflugerville city council hosted an event they called Choice or Fate, The future growth of Pflugerville. The meeting’s purpose was to allow citizens to join with the council to continue to explore the growth issues facing Pflugerville.

John Langmore, board member of Envision Central Texas reviewed the ECT principles and the most recent SH 130 Corridor progress.

Envision Central Texas was formed in 2002 by regional leaders striving for a new approach to address the tremendous growth pressures for the Central Texas region of Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays, Travis and Williamson counties.

In his presentation, Langmore stressed the need for community planning. He told the audience of 150 that ECT has identified several areas of concern: the Austin area has the highest traffic congestion for a city its size in the U.S., urban sprawl is rampant, and there is a lack of regional planning and a need for stronger infrastructure.

Mayor Cat Callen, who serves on the ECT land and transportation committee along with Langmore supports the need for community and regional planning.

“We [city council] are utilizing the information and vision of the ECT,” Callen said. “We are in the process of choosing a consultant to help us develop a master plan for commercial development along the 130 Corridor.”