Naked City

Lloyd Doggett

Although he currently lives far from the fray, U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett's plan to develop land he owns along Old Spicewood Springs Road has landed him in the middle of a controversy that echoes throughout Austin.

Doggett owns 40 acres beside Bull Creek, in a neighborhood that is fighting to preserve its rural character despite the bustle and boom along the nearby nexus of Capital of Texas Hwy. and FM 2222. City of Austin parks officials and members of the Bull Creek Foundation, a watershed protection group, would like to see a public right-of-way cut across the Doggett property to help unify the Bull Creek Greenbelt.

But finding the money to buy the land has been nearly impossible, according to Jerry Saegert, an attorney and childhood friend of Doggett who has been marshaling the development plan. Some time last year, he says, discussions surrounding the streamside section of the property fell apart when it became clear that the city could not afford to pay for the land.

Initially, Saegert says, Doggett's development plan called for a house on each of the 40 acres he owned. It soon became apparent that neighbors living along the lower section of property -- as opposed to the highland portion near existing subdivisions -- didn't want even that relatively low density to spoil the feel of Old Spicewood Springs Road, where they've been fighting to limit development.

So Doggett and Saegert went back to the drawing board and proposed a 24-lot development, which is currently under review. Under this plan, six lots would be located alongside the road and Bull Creek. "I haven't had many complaints when it comes to this development," says Saegert, who adds, "We're still talking to the city about what the plat will look like."

Bull Creek Foundation president Skip Cameron, however, complains that the plan poses problems for both those who would like to see the road officially preserved as a scenic corridor and those who want the Bull Creek Greenbelt to be wholly accessible to the public. "Right now, there are gaps in the trail, including one that stretches along the Doggett property," Cameron says. "What we'd like to see is some sort of easement or dedication of land so that there can be a continuous greenbelt north of Lake Austin." Butch Smith, a planner with the Austin Parks and Recreation Department, says he's disappointed that nobody has found a way to make the land part of the existing greenbelt, especially given that it's currently the only gap in the proposed trail development. "We'd like to ask them to have a setback from the trail, but at this point that doesn't look like it's going to go anywhere," Smith says.

Cameron acknowledges that the money is a stumbling block, but insists that Doggett could find a better way to contribute to the public good. "We're looking for a landowner with the right disposition," he says. "Doggett has a good environmental record and we believe he'd like to maintain that. But this is a piece of property that has been in his family for a long time, and he would obviously also like to make some money on it while the market is good."

Saegert, who refers to the property as Doggett's "retirement," defends the congressmen's intentions. "I don't think you're going to find anybody who is more environmentally concerned," Saegert says. "Lloyd's position all along has been that he doesn't want to violate any of the building regulations for Austin or the county."