Council eyes possible uses for Webberville tract

The local inhabitants are not too happy about it, but the City of Austin is likely to move into the Webberville neighborhood area in a big way over the next few years. City staff briefed the Austin City Council last week about possible uses for the 3,000-acre site in eastern Travis County that is owned by the city.

A consultant’s report shows no significant physical obstacles to using the site for a major piece of infrastructure, such as a power plant, water treatment plant, or landfill. The Council could give an indication on the city’s plans for the Webberville tract at its next meeting on Feb. 28.

 

Webberville leaders, who have offered to purchase the tract from Austin, oppose the having a landfill on the site. However, the Council resolved last year to maintain ownership of the tract. “The Webberville tract presents co-siting opportunities for other city uses like fire, police, and EMS…which are critical to meeting public service needs for our area,” said Assistant City Manager Bert Lumbreras. “Areas for potential service include a wastewater treatment plant, an Austin Energy power plant, or solid waste services.” 

 

Due to the size of the tract, it could accommodate a landfill, recycling center, wastewater treatment plant, or other facilities. “In summary, this evaluation did not identify any condition that would represent a fatal flaw for the use of a site as a solid waste environmental area,” Lumbreras said. “In order to have our consultants finalize their assessment, we need to identify specific uses. Once that is done, we can determine timelines and move forward.”