Sneak Peek of the Williams Tract

On Saturday April 10th, Williamson County opened the gates of the Williams Tract to show the community the amazing hill country property. Thanks to the beautiful prose of Statesman journalist, Claire Osbourne, over 200 people showed up to take a peek of the "bend in the South San Gabriel River where the water is so clear that you can see the bass swimming around." Click here to read Ms. Osbourne's article.

The master plan document gives an overview of the County's goals and objectives of the park and a conceptual layout for the park. The park will be built in phases when voters approve the project.

Master Plan Approved

The Williamson County Commissioner's Court approved the Williams Tract Master Plan Tuesday January 26, 2010. The plan is a blend of community desires and county needs that capitalizes on conserving and protecting the natural open spaces. The budget for constructing the plan improvements is approximately $23 million. Funding for improving the park will be phased and financed through grants and bond monies. No time line has been established for implementing the master plan. Williamson County is currently working on a restoration plan removing the exotic species to return the site to its pre-European settler state.

1000 Acre Park Update

BWM Group and Williamson County folks got together on November 20th to discuss our progress master planning the park. Williamson County Commissioner, Cynthia Long, and Parks Director, Jim Rodgers, let us know where we hit the bulls eye and where we missed the mark. Our next session is Friday, December 18th at the site.

Public Input Summary

BWM and Williamson County are both busy working on the Williams Tract Master plan. BWM is presenting our rough draft of the plan Wednesday November 18th to Parks Director, Jim Rodgers. The public input card above is representative of the majority of the comments received at the input sessions. We are also working on some fun "branding" ideas! Stay tuned.

Williams Tract Progress

The County and Planners have met to discuss the public input received in September. We are currently working on an outline for the plan and fine tuning the goals and objectives as refined by the parks professionals and community. Please check back soon for the outline update.

Public Input Session Today at the Wilco Courthouse

We gathered at the Courthouse in small groups with the elected officials garnering their thoughts about the future of the Williams Tract. These meetings were at 9:00, 9:40 and 10:30.

Some highlights of our input sessions:

9:00 Commissioner Birkman really liked the idea of unprogrammed large open spaces for the community to experience the outdoors, run and play... something many of her constiuents do not have access to in their home environment.

9:40 Commissioner Long asked us to look at emergency access and egress. Commissioner Morrison suggested echoing the existing ranch improvements in the new construction materials and styles.

10:30 Judge Dan Gattis said he wanted a wilderness experience with camping and trails that make you realize you are in the woods. He cautioned us to not over do it for two reasons: to protect the existing natural resources and to protect the county coffers.

Our open house meetings are at 11:30 to 1:30 and 6:00 to 8:00. Please come!

Site Information Gathering Meeting

BWM Group, Williamson County, and local and state park professionals met on site to discuss the dos and don'ts and brainstormed about the 1,011 acre park. It was a great session. BWM was fortunate to receive a tremendous amount of valuable information from the experts for the park master plan. Click here to see today's site visit photos. The comments and more photographs will follow in a subsequent posting.