New Braunfels residents and stakeholders will get their say on projects under consideration for a proposed 2023 bond election during a public input meeting hosted by the city’s Bond Advisory Committee.
The meeting begins at 6 p.m. on Thursday in the training room at New Braunfels Police Department headquarters, at 3030 W. San Antonio St.
Following a series of public input meetings held over the summer on the preliminary designs for proposed projects being considered for a possible May 2023 bond election, the Bond Advisory Committee continues the process of narrowing down that list of projects.
“There are currently 37 projects that are being considered by the Bond Advisory Committee, ranging from transportation, parks, library and economic development,” said Garry Ford, the city’s director of transportation and capital improvements. “Now that residents have had a chance to weigh in on these projects, the Bond Advisory Committee will go over that input and continue the process of deciding which projects will move forward for consideration by City Council.”
The projects under consideration, with estimated cost and funding needed (some proposed transportation projects have already secured some funding from other sources), include:
• Transportation: Barbarosa Road/Saur Lane Phase 1 from FM 1101 to Saengerhalle Road — $21.13 million, $12.13 million
• Transportation: Common Street pedestrian improvements from Liberty Avenue to Loop 337 — $2.72 million, $1.62 million
• Transportation: Citywide street improvements — $25 million
• Transportation: Common Street from Loop 337 to FM 306 — $24.78 million
• Transportation: Conrads Lane from Goodwin Lane to city limit — $11.8 million
• Transportation: Kohlenberg Road from FM 1101 to I-35 — $15.93 million
• Transportation: Citywide intersection improvements — $11.8 million
• Transportation: South Kowald Lane from FM 1101 to I-35 — $10.74 million
• Transportation: Citywide pedestrian improvements — $7.1 million
• Transportation: North-South Collector Phase 1 from I-35 to FM 1101 — $15.34 million
• Transportation: Gruene Road from New Braunfels Street to Rock Street — $5.67 million
• Transportation: Orion Drive from Goodwin Lane to city limits — $10.27 million
• Transportation: Solms Road from I-35 to FM 482 — $4.84 million
• Transportation: River Road from Lakeview Boulevard to Loop 337 — $9.8 million
• Transportation: Hill Country Drive from State Highway 46 to city limits — $17.11 million
• Transportation: Waterway Lane from Gruene Road to Common Street — $4.84 million
• Drainage: Landa Lake Dam and Spillway improvements — $1.18 million
• Drainage: Faust Street/Nacogdoches Avenue improvement — $15.34 million
• Drainage: Blieders Creek/German Creek Channel — $15.34 million
• Drainage: Wood Road/Landa Street Regional Detention Study — $1 million
• Library: Southeast branch — $28.56 million
• Library: Main Library expansion, outdoor program and garden area — $42.84 million (project phasing possible)
• Parks: Mission Hill Park Phase 2 — $12.16 million
• Parks: Alligator Creek Linear Park and Trail (West Section) — $3.51 million
• Parks: Landa Park Circulation Improvements — $10.04 million
• Parks: Guadalupe River Park — $10.04 million (project phasing possible)
• Parks: Zipp Family Sports Park Phase 2 (scope and components for a second phase currently unknown
• Parks: Community Park Development (northwest area) — $8.4 million
• Parks: Spring Fed Pool improvements — $19.6 million
• Parks: HEB Soccer Field renovation — $4.13 million
• Parks: Callen’s Castle Park — $8.5 million
• Parks: Landa Park parking improvements — $11.68 million
• Economic development: Downtown right-of-way enhancements — $10.92 million
• Economic development: Castell Avenue Corridor from Mill Street to Elliot Knox Boulevard — $44.26 million (project phasing possible)
• Economic development: Downtown parking facilities — $11.3 million to $14.2 million
• Comal River improvements: Last tubers exit Phase 1 — $944,100
• Dry Comal Creek Trail: Segment 2 feasibility study and conceptual design — $300,000
For detailed information about the projects currently under consideration, visit the Proposed 2023 Bond website at https://newbraunfels.gov/3246/Proposed-2023-Bond.
The process of one of the projects under consideration for the 2023 ballot, the Castell Avenue Corridor redesign, continued last week with an open house public meeting allowing the community to review the proposed preliminary street designs and provide input and feedback on the conceptual plans.
The initiative is focused on translating the public’s preference for the desired streetscape into the preliminary design, as was outlined during the South Castell Master Planning process.
The street redesign proposes improvements that would enhance pedestrian safety and comfort, elevating the experience of walking downtown, as well as addressing drainage and utility concerns from residents and downtown stakeholders.
“The scope of the project is to take a look at the right-of-way enhancements for the Castell corridor and how that fits in with the context of downtown, the future of the Civic Center and even going down to Business 35,” Ford said. “We’ve gone through an effort of engineering, drainage analysis and landscape design and present that to the public to get some input to see if they are supportive or if there are some revisions that we want to make to the project.”
Physical infrastructure to enhance safety, comfort and pedestrian experience in the corridor would include street trees, pocket gardens, multi-use sidewalk zones, curb extensions and bulb-outs, street furniture and lighting, and other pedestrian and bicycle amenities.
The estimated cost of the project is $44.26 million. However, the project could be phased in by dividing it into drainage and corridor segments.
The estimated cost for drainage projects along the corridor comes in at about $5.9 million.
Divided into segments, work between Bridge Street and Coll Street comes at an estimated cost of $12.5 million, between Coll Street and Jahn Street at $14.4 million and Jahn Street to Business 35 at $11.47 million.
