A four-year battle over a proposed 5,000-seat concert venue near the Austin suburb of Dripping Springs is ending with a plot twist: the land is changing hands, and the venue is dead.
An affiliated entity of the Austin-based conservation group the Shield-Ayres Foundation agreed to buy the property near Fitzhugh Road and Crumley Ranch Road, where California-based Blizexas planned to build the Rockingwall Ranch Event Center, a move that will almost certainly terminate one of the Hill Country’s most contentious projects, KXAN reported.
The plan had been a lightning rod since it surfaced, largely because the site sits atop environmentally sensitive terrain within the Barton Creek watershed and over a portion of the Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone.
Neighbors and environmental advocates warned that the amphitheater’s wastewater and runoff could threaten the watershed, while sound, lighting and traffic from thousands of concertgoers would overwhelm the rural corridor.
Blizexas sought a state permit to irrigate up to 12,000 gallons per day of treated wastewater on the site — a proposal that galvanized opposition.
For residents like Carrie Napiorkowski, whose driveway faces the property, the idea was almost unthinkable. The venue became a symbol of the Hill Country’s broader fight over growth and land use as development pressure intensified west of Austin.
Shield Ranch, a long-standing conservation group and large landowner in the region, emerged early as an opponent.
“We’ve been actively opposed to this venue since the get-go,” said Marshall Ayres Bowen, the group’s vice president and general counsel. Bowen stressed the organization isn’t anti-development but viewed the amphitheater as a severe mismatch for the area’s ecological and community needs.
This week, Fitzhugh Ridge — a Shield Ranch-owned entity — announced a contract to purchase the land from Blizexas. Terms weren’t disclosed, and the sale is expected to close in January. Blizexas didn’t respond to the outlet’s request for comment.
Bowen framed the deal as the outcome of a broad, measured community effort rather than a reflexive NIMBY campaign. Residents met, organized and pressed regulators for years, presenting environmental concerns that ultimately shaped the alternative outcome.
“It wasn’t just, ‘We don’t want this because we don’t like it,’” Bowen told the outlet. “It was, ‘Let’s talk about this… why we don’t think this is a good idea.’”
What comes next for the land is unclear, but Bowen was definitive that a concert venue will not be built on that particular property. Napiorkowski said the announcement brought palpable relief.
“I really did believe David could beat the Goliath if you have enough people behind you,” she said.
— Eric Weilbacher
Read more
Court ends Dripping Springs’ development stalemate
Lennar clears hurdle for Hill Country project over environmental concerns
$10 raffle ticket buys chance to own $7M Texas Hill Country resort
A Texas broker known for discretion tried out online virality. Will it lead to sales?
