Fossler, Meyer sworn in to Bastrop City Council
The Bastrop City Council certified the election results for the city’s latest elections, welcoming Kerry Fossler and Cynthia Meyer as its newest members.
Meyer ran unopposed for a second term for the Place 2 seat, while Fossler beat former Council Member Jimmy Crouch by 64 votes in the race in Place 4. The new council also reelected John Kirkland as its mayor pro tem, who fills in for the mayor if absent.
The council recognized Crouch’s three years of service before Judge Christopher Duggan administered Fossler’s and Meyer’s oaths of office.
“(Crouch) has been very engaged with our homeless population, and that warms my heart,” Council Member Cheryl Lee said. “He has a willingness to serve the community and does not shy away from speaking to those who want to talk to him.”
City Manager Sylvia Carrillo presented a plaque to Crouch for his time on the council.
“I originally ran for council with a specific reason in mind – that was to repair what I saw as a fractured building and development department,” Crouch said, thanking the council, city staff and residents for their support. “That area of the city has now gone through a complete 180-degree turnaround from where it was three years ago. … I have enjoyed every minute that I’ve served the city.”
After taking her oath of office, Fossler thanked Crouch as her predecessor and a long-time friend for bridging the gap between the city government and developers as the city undergoes major code revisions. She said she and the City Council will use those new relationships to navigate future developments.
“I want to form a good neighbor designation program, a voluntary program that developers can participate in if they so desire,” Fossler said, speaking from the dais for the first time. “It’s a way for Bastropians to express our values and gives developers a mechanism to express their goodwill in wanting to be a good neighbor.”
Fossler laid out her plan for her good neighbor program, wherein developers can pick a category designated by the City Council and receive the designation from the people of Bastrop. Some categories she mentioned included planting more trees, supporting the city’s wildlife and increasing public art space.
“Once we have a few under our belt, the developers will have other developments to look at for an example,” Fossler said. “We’re in reactionary mode based on what (developers) propose, and we have to go first. We have to initiate the conversations, and we have to get into them earlier.”
Council hears Bastrop Gateway updates, concerns
Mayor Lyle Nelson said the City Council and residents did not have an opportunity before the meeting to review the latest information on Bastrop Gateway, a proposed mixed-use development that would be built on the hill behind Buc-ee’s. Despite this, the council held a public hearing to listen to residents’ thoughts on the development.
“We are still working on our proposal,” said Steven Beagle, the development’s architect. “We are very sensitive to the Lost Pines neighborhood. … We’re here to be good neighbors and to make this project suitable for Bastrop and to fit in.”
Resident Pablo Serna said the development’s concept could benefit the city, but he wishes it would be built elsewhere.
“It can’t be there,” Serna said. “The top of that hill, you can see it as you drive over the highway. A lot of people see that, and they know they’re coming home. We don’t need a building to tell us where we’re going (when) we can see those pine trees and know exactly where we’re at. … This really is about what’s appropriate and where it’s appropriate.”
Ultimately, the council voted to postpone the zoning change for Bastrop Gateway until its meeting on May 28 to better understand the developer’s evolving changes to the plan.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Fossler, Meyer sworn in to Bastrop City Council
