Council adds conditions on offers for land

The West Lake Hills City Council recently fine-tuned requirements for any potential purchasers of an approximately 2.5-acre tract of undeveloped land the city is selling at 110 Westlake Drive.

The council and staff hope to get an idea of what effect on trees, traffic and drainage any potential development of the property might cause. The city will accept bids on the property for three months, at the direction of Mayor Linda Anthony.

Anthony emphasized that after proposals are turned in, the city’s chosen top applications will be made public to be discussed and parsed by anyone.

“Because this property is abutting some low-density commercial but is surrounded on several sides by residential, what we put on the property is almost as important if not as important as the dollar amount we get,” Anthony said at the council’s June 28 meeting. “Because we cared about what’s going on this piece of property, we’re taking this route, which is kind of an unusual route for a city to take.”

Anthony also asked council members whether they would be OK with a restaurant on the site, as a hypothetical.

“This is a residential street, and it’s got parking issues and intersection issues,” she said. “I can’t imagine a restaurant going in there.”

The council approved changes to the request for proposals and asked for supplemental information, including the impact on the site, through traffic, trees and drainage.