Lakeway — The City Council voted 5–2 Monday to rezone approximately 13.366 acres at 15115 Kollmeier Drive to a Planned Unit Development (PUD) called Lakeway Heights, allowing up to 82 single‑family lots and a base R‑3 zoning standard.

The adopted ordinance rezones land now zoned AG (agricultural) and R‑6 (single‑family) to a PUD with a base density just under 7 units per acre. The council amended the PUD during debate to raise the minimum dwelling size to 1,700 square feet and added a condition requiring a sidewalk connection to Lake Travis Elementary subject to a rough‑proportionality determination.

The development team, represented by applicant Spencer Hook, said the concept reduces an earlier proposal of 130 units to 82 homes and emphasizes smaller, lower‑maintenance lots aimed at a lower price point than many new houses in Lakeway. Hook said the project would include an amenity area, dog park and an enlarged rain‑garden detention area that he described as “a rain garden — really a fancy word for a large grassy field with underdrains” intended to over‑detain runoff and exceed state minimums.

Opponents — dozens of nearby residents who spoke at a lengthy public comment period — said the project would increase traffic on Kolmeyer Drive and Cavalier Canyon, threaten trees on the site and create drainage and school‑safety concerns. “My main concern is the traffic,” said Brian South, a Kollmeier Circle resident whose home backs the site. “People are going to make unprotected lefts on 620 in mass.”

City staff described the PUD package in detail: 82 lots with a minimum lot size of 2,700 square feet, an 18‑foot front setback, 10‑foot building separations and a plan to allow front‑facing garages. Rather than dedicate parkland, the developer will pay the city’s parkland fee of $4,500 per lot, a total of $369,000. Staff also told council the plan proposes an oversized detention/water‑quality facility designed as a rain garden rather than a concrete pond.

Council discussion focused on whether the PUD was an appropriate use for the site and whether its public‑benefit tradeoffs were adequate: members praised the developer for reducing density from previous submittals, but several members pressed for stronger protections on trees, drainage and pedestrian safety. Councilmember O’Brien said he supported the PUD after the changes and noted the city’s comprehensive plan encourages medium‑density infill when compatible with surrounding uses. Councilmember Sherman and one other councilmember voted no.

Before the vote, council imposed two explicit conditions: the minimum dwelling unit size in the PUD ordinance was increased from 1,600 to 1,700 square feet as a friendly amendment, and the developer agreed to provide a sidewalk connection to Lake Travis Elementary — primarily along Kollmeier Drive, with Cavalier Canyon as a secondary option if site conditions make Kollmeier infeasible — subject to a legal rough‑proportionality review.

The ordinance passed 5–2. The developer said he plans onsite construction measures intended to reduce impacts on the adjacent school during construction, will build an internal lift station and sewer extension to connect to the Bellagio lift station, and will over‑detain stormwater on the site. Councilmembers asked staff and the developer to provide additional detail about tree protection measures and final sidewalk routing during site development review.

The council’s action rezones the property to a PUD with the restrictions and conditions captured in the adopted ordinance; the developer will still need to complete required site‑development approvals and permit work, including final engineering for the detention/water‑quality system and off‑site sewer work.