Former Bee Cave City Manager added to lawsuit against industrial warehouse
BEE CAVE, Texas (KXAN) — The City of Bee Cave added a new defendant to its lawsuit against developers of the industrial warehouse off Highway 71.
The nearly 270,000-square-foot business park sits next to a residential area in Bee Cave's extra-territorial jurisdiction. The facility under construction is near the intersection of State Highway 71 and Serene Hills Drive.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Bee Cave City Council votes to file lawsuit to stop development near residential area
Online plans showed the property would have three buildings with 80 docking bays that could hold big rigs, warehouse space and offices.
The lawsuit alleged developers violated a development agreement it signed with the city in 2015. The city also claimed noise and light pollution disrupts residents' ability to get good sleep.
The City said it amended the lawsuit by introducing fraud allegations and adding former City Manager Clint Garza as a defendant.
The lawsuit alleges the developers relied on Garza to allegedly withhold information about the warehouses from the City Council. According to the lawsuit, developers emailed Garza instead of going through the proper channels.
'This carefully orchestrated scheme was designed to create the appearance of 'notice' tothe City (i.e., emails to Garza) while allowing Defendants to avoid any real oversight and proceedwith development in violation of the Development Agreement,' the lawsuit stated.
The City also claimed that Garza allegedly received payments for facilitating developments without council oversight.
The lawsuit stated Garza met with Wheelock representatives in 2019 to discuss 'upcoming opportunities' related to the property. Wheelock, also known as WS-COS Development, was the original owner of the property.
The City alleged that Wheelock 'specifically instructed all potential or new owners and developers not to communicate with the City about those projects.'
KXAN reached out to Garza via his social media. We are waiting for a response.
A spokesperson for Velocis, a developer for the project, called these new claims baseless.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Judge allows construction to continue at controversial industrial park in Bee Cave
Bee Cave has already wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars on a failed attempt to stop construction. These new allegations are an attempt to distract from their own mismanagement and the Court's rejection of their claims. The City should stop wasting public resources on this failed effort.'
Spokesperson for Velocis
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