Travis County Commissioners Court
December 18, 2007
Item 2
2 is a public hearing to receive comments regarding a request to authorize the filing of an instrument to vacate 10 feet of a 25 foot wide drainage easement located along the east lot line of lot 5, block h, of long canyon ii-a, a subdivision in precinct three
>> move to open the public hearing.
>> second.
>> all in favor? That passes by unanimous vote.
>> this is a drainage easement. The property owner is asking for a partial vacation indication, 10 out of 25 feet. There are means to convey the storm water drainage from the lot. We therefore recommend that the vacation, partial vacation and the purpose of today's public hearing is to receive any public testimony. I know of no objections to this.
>> would anyone like to give testimony during this public hearing, item no. 2 please come forward. First, are you in support or in opposition?
>> opposition.
>> if you would give us your full name. Second gentleman that raised his hand, please come forward. Is there a third and fourth? Come forward, please. If you would begin.
>> my name is peter
>> [indiscernible] the president of the homeowners -- long canyon phase two and three homeowners association. This property is in our association. We are asking for a postponement of this item for two weeks today. There are several issues of the property and we have arranged a meeting with the property owner for tomorrow night and we hope to get those issues resolved. And bring this back without any kind of opposition in two weeks.
>> any emergency reason why we cannot delay this until the first work session after the first of the year, which will be probably January 8th. January 8th is what we're looking at. Any opposition from staff?
>> no.
>> anybody in opposition to a two-week extension?
>> you are the applicant.
>> yes, sir.
>> have you met with members of the neighborhood association.
>> no, sir. We have been in discussion with them. We have not met. The issues that they're talking about are not issues specific to this vacation. They are issues specific to the building process. All we are here for today is to just get the 10 feet vacated.
>> what's staff's recommendation?
>> just purely drainage issue, it does note our requirements.
>> yes, sir? Does meet our requirements.
>> your name.
>> my name is, I beg your pardon.
>> name, please.
>> name is ed king. I知 president of the homeowners association phase 1. We do believe that the drainage easement is a very important matter to the homeowners associations from two or three respects. And -- and we begin would usual for the delay so -- urge for the delay so that we can resolve the matters with the developer.
>> what's the timing on this? How long have we had it?
>> I知 not sure when it first came in.
>> I don't have that information here. Typically when we review it and set the hearing, it's just a few months.
>> we typically allow an opportunity to get together. Believing that it's a good neighborhood thing to do. Even slightly unnecessary. We can listen to you 10 or 15 minutes, then grant the postponement which we are -- which we I think are inclined to do, aren't we? My recommendation would be that we just set it for January 8th, have staff give us a listing of neighborhood concerns and a staff response and a pros and cons, that way we could efficiently address this item on January 8th. I don't know that it makes sense for us to hear all of the concerns that you all can easily discuss, chances are you can probably agree to some of them. But if there are some that you cannot reach agreement on, that's why we're here. And so we can hear both sides and basically land on one or make a decision and I think we're pointed to January 8th. The reason for the long delay is that we are having consent only for the next two sessions. Typically when it comes to us for the first time, there is objection, or concerns raised, we give ourselves an opportunity to mull over them anyway. Yes, sir? If you would just -- if you would have a seat there and give us your name, we would be happy to get your comments, too.
>> I知 terry metheny, a managing owner of this property. We have followed all of the -- rules and procedures of long canyon homeowners phase 2 and 3 association. We do have a letter from the homeowners association president of phase 2 and phase 3 that states that this particular issue is allowed and isn't a problem with. So-- so I just want to in a point that we have met with -- met the requirements for these issues and it hasn't been done in the dark and that we would request that this vacation be allowed so that we can then get that behind us and then work on the other issues which don't -- which may not require Travis County approval.
>> so you think the vacation does not impact the issues that they -- that they wish to raise with you?
>> I do not -- I do not think this vacation impacts the issues which they wish to raise at this time that has already been approved by letter.
>> okay.
>> one other statement, too, is that I知 not familiar with mr. Ed king, but I do know that if he's the president of the homeowners association of phase 1, that is not the -- the phase of our subdivision. He certainly can talk as a citizen of the neighborhood. But it is not a governing body for our particular property.
>> do we know what concerns the neighborhood association plans to raise?
>> I do not.
>> we would have a representative at the meeting.
>> sure.
>> if we're invited.
>> the meeting is scheduled tomorrow anyway. Why wouldn't you just go and meet with your neighbors and figure out what concerns you can address and which ones you cannot. Make sure that we know that so January 8th, when we come to caught, we will know in advance what the issues are.
>> I certainly appreciate that. Obviously as you know the issue probably is the fact that times money and we have been working this issue for quite some time. This -- down the tube every day.
>> we have a reputation for moving speedily, but even here items often get past that first time.
>> I understand.
>> the backup that came to us, came from staff, it basically is to recommend approval because it's a standard issue. Standard proposition, staff didn't know about the objections that the residents -- that the residents would like to make to you all. And it may be that after that you all turn the meeting into a christmas celebration, have a real good time and -- are the best of neighbors afterwards. We would like to promote that kind of relationship.
>> so do we. I actually live in the neighborhood. So our goal, we had a meeting set for last Friday, which the neighborhood association canceled and that would have been we've known this date was coming up and they've known this date was coming up. So -- so the issues and they spelled out three issues in an e-mail which have each been addressed, we have no issue with having a meeting and tried to have the meeting before today to have this resolved. The challenge is if it doesn't get resolved today we're now two weeks plus further back in a project where -- in a build where that -- that costs money. So we did try to meet beforehand. And -- we had a meeting time set with them that they backed out on. So I知 not trying to point a finger. We're trying to be the good neighbor. But the truth is we're here to only address this issue which is the vacation of the 10 feet of drainage easement. The three issues that they've brought up, they don't surround vacating the 10 feet of the easement.
>> okay. What's your name for the record.
>> andy allen.
>> so if we were to approve this request today, what would happen between now and the first of the year.
>> we could get our plans submitted to the city to be able to have the city start working to approve the -- we have everything into the city, we have to have the vacation of easement to have the plans approved so then we can start up the forms, doing those things. Because we're going into the holiday to push back further means that then we go into January where many of the subs who would be doing the foundation would not be here anyway if we don't have that lined up now.
>> were you under the impression that the city would do a whole lot of work between now and January?
>> they have already gone through the process and approved the plans subject to only this. This is the last issue.
>> is this not something that -- that -- that you all can go in the back room here and in the next 30 minutes deal with --
>> yes. I don't -- I知 not clear that we can. These three issues, they have resolved them, but these three issues are not resolved to our satisfaction. That's the bottom line. There was a letter of approval for building a driveway. That did not include the vacation of the conservation of the drainage easement and we requested they acknowledge the approval, those were never acknowledged. I don't consider that to be a complete approval of what we did approve, certainly not our approval of vacation of the conservation easement I mean the drainage easement, excuse me.
>> we would normally want to know in advance what the various con continuing dwents are. The -- contingents are. The reasons given by the side holding them for them. That way in preparation for the meeting, we have an opportunity really to sort of see what the issues are and come in with questions, et cetera. You believe that issues have been addressed, they believe the issues have not.
>> that's why we are going to the meeting. Absolutely.
>> we don't know.
>> if we approve the action today, won't the meeting be made unnecessary.
>> no, sir. Because the other issues are having to do with not the vacation of the easement, but the construction that would happen on that lot. Those are the -- the other issues have to do with the build, this just has to do with only vacating the 10-foot of the drainage easement. It was a huge concrete thing that went 150 feet back that was all removed and now concrete piping was put under ground to be able to take the water. We have the engineer who designed it. The county has signed off on all of the work. And so all that we're here to ask for is the vacation of the 10 feet. So that as we're meeting with them, we can also be working down the same path with the city to finalize the plan.
>> are your issues around the easement?
>> we have issues that are concerned with the easement, issues that are separate from the easement. Some of them are completely separate, some of them are related.
>> what are your issues that are related?
>> first of all the vacation of the drainage easement. The second issue --
>> what is the issue about the vacating --
>> there's some trail rides across that property and we're concerned about those.
>> with the trail rights -- be infringed upon simply by removing the concrete and replacing it with the concrete tunneling?
>> that's already been done.
>> seems like that advantageous.
>> the piping has already been put in.
>> right.
>> without the subdivision's permission.
>> does that affect the trail -- the alleged trail rides.
>> raises a question of the trail rides. The second issue is it appears there's going to be a diversion of the drainage water on to the neighbor's property, which is a problem for us.
>> the applicant has built a septic field that infinishings on the conservation easement.
>> drainage easement.
>> conservation easement.
>> does that have anything to do with the drainage easement today.
>> > the drainage easement and the diversion of water on the neighbor's property is related to the septic field.
>> those are three issues directly related to the drainage easement.
>> yes. We have the engineer here who designed it if you would like to hear from her.
>> I move that we postpone action on this item until January 8th.
>> second.
>> that we encourage the parties to get together to work on the issues. That we ask staff to attend the meeting and make a list of neighborhood concerns and indicate to us how the applicant will address them. Part of this motion is to encourage y'all to try to work through these issues and reach a resolution, if you can. If not, present to the court outstanding issues on January 8th and we will start at the top and work our way to the bottom and decide.
>> let me withdraw my second. Commissioner Daugherty --
>>
>> [indiscernible]
>> any discussion of that? All in favor? That passes by unanimous vote. Sorry about that y'all. That's the way we make progress. So if you will pull -- delay the action item, which is number 23, until January 8th and good luck to y'all. If we can assist, meeting place, any information between now and then, especially regarding county policies. If you all would like anna bolin or joe gieselman know there, we will be happy to help. Good luck to you. Move that the public hearing be closed.
>> second.
>> all in favor? That passes by unanimous vote
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Last Modified:
Wednesday, December 19, 2007, 18:30 AM