Lakeway Backs Bee Cave in Lawsuit, Sets Tax Cap

Lakeway City Council Approves Maximum Tax Rate, Joins Bee Cave Lawsuit

The Lakeway City Council approved a maximum tax rate of 0.1625 for the 2025 fiscal year and unanimously voted to intervene in Bee Cave’s lawsuit against West Austin Business Park.

The council will finalize the 2025 tax rate and budget at its Sep. 16 meeting. Public hearings for the budget and tax rate are scheduled for Sep. 3 and Sep. 16. The approved maximum tax rate means the council cannot approve a tax rate higher than 0.1625 per $100 home valuation.

Last week, Bee Cave filed an injunction to halt construction at West Austin Business Park, a proposed logistics and distribution facility off Texas 71 and Serene Hills Drive. Although the 269,959 square acres are not within Bee Cave city limits, the city signed a development agreement with landowners in 2015, granting it regulatory control, according to the city website.

The 2015 agreement stipulated that the land be used for commercial and office purposes. However, when former owners sold the land in 2023, the new owners began constructing an industrial park, including three buildings, warehouse space, and 80 docks for 18 wheelers, according to the city website.

Bee Cave claims the industrial nature of the business park is unsuitable for neighboring residents, citing issues like pollution, traffic, and noise. At the Lakeway City Council meeting, 35 residents spoke in support of Lakeway’s involvement in the lawsuit.

In other actions, the city voted to waive the $1,050 pool inspection fee for pool owners impacted by alkali-silica reaction (ASR). Those affected by ASR, a concrete chemical reaction causing cracks, won't have to pay the inspection fee if they rebuild or demolish their pool. Out of 844 pools built in Lakeway between 2017 and 2023, 85 have experienced ASR.

In a 4-1 vote, the council approved an updated future land use map for 5 acres at 300 Birrell Street. The Drenner Group, representing the owners, also requested a zoning change from office/retail to a planned unit development (PUD). The PUD passed in a 3-2 vote.

The development’s medium-density home concept, including duplexes and townhomes, aligns with Lakeway’s comprehensive plan to diversify home types, according to the staff report.

Council member Kelly Brynteson, who voted against the PUD, expressed concerns about increasing density. “People are getting worried that we’re adding so much density that we’re not going to be able to traverse these new roads,” Brynteson said.

The developers, initially proposing 30 single-family homes and 18 townhomes, opted for 42 single-family patio homes after the council's opposition to their original plan.